Health systems lost an average of 118 days of procedure time for hip replacements on the high end of the spectrum, and an average of 46 days for breast cancer surgery on the low end.
Dr. Moore was responding to a question about how Ontario plans to deal with the 350,000-plus residents who have not yet had their first dose of the vaccine.
A Manitoba man who needed hip surgery opted to have the procedure done in Mexico for $16,000 rather than wait the expected two to three years in his home province.
Numerous experts have long predicted that new variants would emerge in less developed countries if the pace of vaccinating their citizens lags behind richer countries.
Rebecca Jesseman, policy director at the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, says while health and safety standards for such facilities exist, there are no national standards when it comes to the quality of treatments or qualifications of those providing services.
The municipalities have contended that the decision to consolidate the dispatch services to save the government money could put the lives of people in their communities at risk.
