Consciousness-Based Education - Maharishi University of ...

Health Care Cost Crisis and transcendental Meditation programdiminish budget deficits through several means, including reducingthe federal government’s contributions to the provincial medical caresystems, in order to restore economic strength. At one time, Ottawapaid 48% of the nation’s annual medical expenditures; now, the federalcontribution is only 38%. Even more drastic cuts are intended by themid-1990’s. According to the 1993 President of the Canadian MedicalAssociation, “The provinces are trapped between the public’s unlimitedexpectations of a ‘free’ system—expectations which are fueled by politicians—anda federal government intent on reducing the debt” (Brown,1989, p. 29). In response to the reduced federal contribution, the provinceshave had to either increase taxes or ration medical expendituresmore severely or both. These options are difficult and unpopular.Overall, Canada has been more successful than the United States inslowing the rate of medical expense growth, especially with referenceto the physicians’ price component of health expenditures (Fuchs &Hahn, 1990; Hughes, 1991). Quebec, in particular, surpassed all otherprovinces in Canada in containing the price of physician and othermedical services. Indeed, most of the total difference between the relativelyhigh U.S. and low Canadian medical expenditures is caused bythe extraordinary success of cost containment programs in Quebec. Yetthe quality of care does not seem to have suffered: for example, Quebechas the lowest infant mortality rate of any province in the world.Recently, however, increases in utilization have led to dramaticincreases in medical expenditures even in Quebec. The Quebec Ministerof Health and Social Services said the province will have a shortfallof at least $2 billion in the health care budget over the next five yearsif current trends persist. Medical care presently consumes $12.8 billionannually, or one third of the province’s total budget. Consequently,a massive restructuring of Quebec’s entire health and social servicessystem is under way in order to lower expenditures and improve efficiency.Proposed changes may include deviating from the guidelines ofthe Canada Health Act by charging fees for some medical services toreduce capricious utilization.Hughes (1991) found that increases in the supply of physicians havebeen a major contributor to increases in utilization. Barer et al. (1988)and Hughes (1991) provide cogent evidence for physician-induceddemand phenomena in Quebec. Their analysis shows that new physicians361