The number of MRI machines in Canada paints an extremely lacking picture: the country has fewer MRI units than the entire US state of Pennsylvania, despite having over three times its population.Canada, according to the most recently published statistics from 2022 to 2023, possesses 432 MRI machines for its now over 41 million people.In contrast, the state of Pennsylvania, which has a population of over 13 million people, has, according to a paper published in 2025 an estimated 590 MRI machines.The state of California, which has a population slightly smaller than Canada's at 39.5 million people, has over 1,650 MRI machines, according to 2025 statistics..The Fraser Institute data reports most Canadians will be forced to wait an average of four months for an MRI scan.A 2022–2023 report on Canadian medical imaging found that Canada ranks in the bottom 25% of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries for the number of MRI machines per million people.It also ranks in the bottom 50% of OECD countries for the average volume of "publicly funded MRI exams per 1,000" people.The exam, which is a non-invasive way of taking a clear image of the inside of the human body, is especially useful for detecting aneurysms, multiple sclerosis, strokes, tumors, and brain injuries, all life-saving detections.On average, Canada has 10.8 MRI machines per one million people, and in 2022 to 2023, over 2.2 million people received a publicly funded MRI exam.
