November 26, 2025
RED FM News Desk
A newly released report is raising serious concerns about the rising number of Canadians who have died while waiting for medical procedures.
According to public policy think tank SecondStreet.org, at least 23,746 patients died between April 2024 and March 2025 while awaiting surgeries or diagnostic tests. This marks a three per cent increase over the previous year and pushes the total number of reported wait-list deaths since 2018 to over 100,000.
The findings were compiled using freedom of information requests sent to more than 40 health agencies across Canada. However, the report notes that several provinces provided incomplete statistics, while Alberta and parts of Manitoba did not disclose any figures — meaning the actual number of wait-list deaths is likely higher.
SecondStreet.org president Colin Craig criticized governments for failing to publicly track and disclose patient wait-list mortality.
“It’s interesting that governments will regularly inspect restaurants and report publicly if there’s a minor problem such as a missing paper towel holder,” Craig stated. “Meanwhile, no government reports publicly on patients dying on waiting lists. It’s quite hypocritical.”
If you’d like, I can produce a shorter, punchier, social-media-ready version or a more formal newsroom style.
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