Although Canada does not have a national health care plan, citizens are able to access health care throughout Canada's provinces and territories. This is due to the Canada Health Act (which is discussed in detail below) which is Canada's publicly funded health insurance. Provinces and territories are required to provide coverage for health services that are similar in features. Those who are eligible are able to have health care insurance away from their province of residence and access health care without paying out-of-pocket for the expenses.
Contents:
Canadian citizens who fulfill the requirements are able to access the aforementioned health care services provided by the provincial and territorial government. However, those who are not qualified for publicly funded health care typically have to pay costs directly or are covered by their employment benefits or independently bought private insurance. Private insurance is usually covered (90%) by employers, unions, and other organizations that involve a contract. However, private insurance can only cover supplementary benefits and not those included in publicly funded plans. Approximately two-thirds of the Canadian population has private insurance, which generally covers dental care, vision, out-patient prescription drugs, rehabilitation services, private hospital rooms, and other services not covered by Medicare or provincial plans.
(For more information on private insurance, please visit Private Sector)
Provincial and territorial governments may provide and fund supplementary benefits for groups with difficulties accessing appropriate or supplemental health care, such as low-income residents and seniors. This could include funding drugs prescribed outside of hospitals, ambulance costs, hearing, vision and dental care costs which the Canada Health Act does not already cover.
As illustrated by the figure to the right, the Canadian Constitution determines a large portion of how Canada's health care system is organized, namely it dictates the roles and responsibilities of federal, provincial and territorial governments. Provincial and territorial governments are mainly responsible for delivering health care, along with other social services. They also share responsibilities in regards to sanitation, infectious diseases and related education.
On the left side of the figure, there is the Federal Government and their responsibility is to set and administer national health principles for the health care system. The Federal Government provides funding and delivery for primary and supplementary services for specific groups in the population, for example Indigenous communities and veterans.