DEMOGRAPHICS, AGING AND HEALTH-CARE - IS THERE A CRISIS

Will the aging of Canada's population bankrupt the health care system? In this issue (see pages 1555 to 1560) Dr. Marie Demers reports that the increase in physician service costs for elderly people in Quebec f rom 1982 to 1992 resulted primarily from increased utilization and onl y secondarily fro the growth of the elderly population. In this editor ial the author argues that the common perception that masses of elderl y people will soon swamp the system deflects attention from the crucia l issue of utilization. Although a wide range of interventions for eld erly people have demonstrable benefits, more research is needed to ens ure that intensified services, especially for elderly people in good h ealth, are effective and well targeted. It is not the aging of our pop ulation that threatens to precipitate a financial crisis in health car e, but a failure to examine and make appropriate changes to our health care system, especially patterns of utilization.