Major Justice Canada study puts big price tag on spousal violence
OTTAWA - A major new study on how much spousal violence costs Canadian society puts the price tag at more than $7 billion for just one year.
Researchers at Justice Canada made a detailed accounting of all reported incidents of spousal violence in 2008, looking at the cost of health care, police, social services and personal costs such as lost wages.
The report found far more women hurt by spousal violence, costing them and society $4.8 billion, while male victims cost $2.6 billion.
The Canadian Press obtained the study, completed this fall, under the Access to Information Act.
Almost 50,000 cases of spousal violence were reported to police in 2008, and the vast majority of victims were women.
A Vancouver researcher into spousal abuse, Colleen Varcoe, welcome the new study, saying it shows that despite some advances in women's equality, the level of violence against women has not diminished.
