Health Insurance System In Canada

This paper will discuss the Canadian healthcare system compared to the United States healthcare system. Although they’re close in proximity, these two nations have very different health care systems. Each healthcare system has its own difficulties, and is currently trying to find ways to improve. Canada currently uses the Universal Health Care system; which provides healthcare coverage to all Canadian citizens (Canadian Health Care, 2007). The services are executed on both a territorial and provincial basis, by staying within the guidelines that have been enforced by the federal government (Canadian Health Care, 2007).

Public Policies strive to protect all citizens across the nation, includes low-income citizens who often go unrecognized in society. To make sure this happens, legislature has put forth the “The Canada Health Act”, which requires the provincial government to meet certain expectations regarding public-health care and insurance plans. Though this act states that health services are free and accessible facilities, issues arise when citizens need urgent medical attention but appointment are unavailable until weeks later. Many of these poor individuals cannot afford to pay the extra amount to receive faster care as oppose to their rich counterparts.

In the book on a citizens guidelines to policy and politics, Katherine Fierlbeck argues that “The 1983 Canada Health Act replaced the 1947 Hospital Insurance and Diagnostic Services act because of the shift from a system of 50-50 federal-provincial cost sharing to a system of block funding established in Ottawa in 1977” (Fierlbeck 2011, pg.20). Until the period of the mid 1980’s, the Canadian health care system is to be categorized in a disarray, having no foundation to components and accomplishment. The system is to rely mainly on cost sharing; whereby in a health insurance policy only a portion is paid by the health insurance. While enabling the insured party to pay a portion of the price of covered services. In this case, cost sharing is based on 50-50 provincial and federal cost-sharing agreement to a fault. By Ottawa giving tax transfers to the provinces in replacement of direct transfers, but the federal government had no capacity to conceal cash. This in return is able to affect provinces because it deprived the federal government effective, efficient, and responsive measure of provinces holding the five principles of the Canada health care. According to About Canada Health Care, Pat Armstrong and Hugh Armstrong speaks about the five principles of health care, which are; “Public administration, Comprehensiveness, Universality, Portability, and Accessibility” (Pat Armstrong & Hugh Armstrong 2008, pg.28). These five principles holds the provinces accountable to the

Canada 's healthcare system is praised globally for its universal and free healthcare. It started to take shape after World War II in 1945. Health insurance was introduced and was attempted, but was not successful even though there was an increase in the spending of health related services and goods. Fast forward a few years to 1961 where Tommy Douglas, the premier of Saskatchewan, developed the idea for an all-inclusive insurance plan. He later inspired the Medical Care Act in Canada in 1967, when he pointed out health care is a right for all Canadians. From this one thought, Canada has become of the many countries with a universal health care system. Ever since Tommy Douglas sparked the idea for health care coverage, Canada is praised for the way it carries out its system because of several key features. This system is publically funded, is universal and is accessible to everyone across the nation. Because this is a public system, funding comes from the tax payers and some federal funding, so there is no extra cost for the patients. Also, being a universal system it has offered care to all Canadians, immigrants and visitors. Unlike the U.S who does not provide healthcare to its entire population because it is a private system; access depends on how much someone could afford, and how

The Canadian health care system is funded majorly by the public, with very few private donations. Over the past few decades acts of large-scale philanthropy by wealthy private donors have started to increase, due to the investments in social programs and infrastructure from the government declining. Without the aid of private donors and large sources of income from outside of the public (government) the infrastructure of all hospitals, clinics, and the totality of western healthcare systems would collapse and ultimately fail as the system is set up presently. There is an opportunity of keeping a healthy and happy society sustained by public funds, as long as the government is able to step up and provide the healthcare system with enough funds, making the donations from philanthropists an excess instead of a necessity.

Health care is an essential service needed by citizens. As a result, the government plays an important role by designing an appropriate health care system for its citizens. In this paper, a comparison between the health care system in the U.S. and Canada has been made. Using various literary sources, the comparison has been done considering the four components of health care services delivery; financing, insurance, delivery, and payment. The findings indicate that the health care system in the U.S. is expensive but more efficient than the single-payer health care system in Canada.

     In the past, Canada’s government-funded, universally accessible, health care system has been praised and admired both at home and abroad as one of the finest in the world. A great source of pride and comfort for many Canadians is that it is based on five fundamental principles. Principles that are a reflection of the values held by Canadian citizens since the formation of Medicare in 1966. These principles were reinforced in the Canada Health Act, (CHA), of 1984 and state that the Canadian system is universal, accessible, portable, comprehensive and non-profit.

In 1984, the Canada Health Act was passed, which prohibited extra billing by doctors on patients. The health care system is for the most part publicly funded. Because of Tommy Douglas, Canada has free health care; it is funded through tax dollars. Health coverage is not affected by loss or change of jobs, as long as premiums are up to date, and there are no lifetime limits or exclusions for pre-existing conditions. The French health care system is one of universal health care largely financed by government national health insurance. In the 2000 assessment of world health care systems, the World Health Organization found that France provided the "best overall health care" in the world. In France, when you

Under this system individual citizens are provided preventative care and medical treatments from primary care physicians as well as access to hospitals, dental surgery and additional medical services. With few exceptions, all citizens qualify for health coverage regardless of medical history, personal income, or standard of living. (Canadian Health Care, 2004-2007) These insurance plans are provincial or territorial and are financed by both the federal and the provincial authorities. Provinces are similar to states in the US, and Canada has 10 provinces, which are Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan. From about 1940 to 1950 the American government stepped in and encouraged employers to offer health insurance as a part of employee compensation packages which in turn the supply of health insurance increased as more and more commercial insurance companies entered the market and the use of healthcare increased as medical technology became more sophisticated.

The Canada Healthcare act [R.S. 1985, c. C-6] passed in 1984. It ensures that all residents of Canada have an equal access to necessary physician services, no extra billing from physicians and hospital. The act is on five main principles, Public administration necessary services are to offer on a non-profit basis. Next, accessibility coverage with no extra charges and comprehensiveness coverage for all medically necessary services at all times. Portability coverage is to extend to all residents in all provinces and territories. The fifth principle is universality coverage for all eligible residents of all provinces and territories (SEDAP, 2007).

Canada’s health care system “can be described as a publicly-funded, privately-provided, universal, comprehensive, affordable, single-payer, provincially administered national health care system” (Bernard, 1992, p.103). Health care in Canada is provincial responsibility, with the Canada Health act being a federal legislation (Bernard, 1992, p. 102). Federal budget cuts, has caused various problems within Medicare such as increased waiting times and lack of new technology. Another problem with Medicare is that The Canada Heath Act does not cover expenditures for prescriptions drugs. All these issue has caused individuals to suggest making Medicare privatized. Although, Canada’s health care system consists of shortcomings, our universal

According to an overview of Canadian poll surveying public opinion on their universal health care system, 88% of Canadians reported their value for a strong, national, and publically funded health system (Mendelsohn, 2002). Canada is one of the four nations that provide their populations with access to medical services through their universal health care system of 1984 (Bodenheimer & Grumbach, 2008). The Canadian health care system is unique in that it prohibits the private health insurance coverage for the fundamental services that are provided by the Canada Health Act; private insurance can be used as a supplement for services that are either partially covered or not covered under the universal health insurance (Steinbrook, 2006). Conversely, in the American health care system there isn’t a universal health coverage for the nation, but rather four different means of paying for health care which includes patient paying out of pocket for individual payments, individual private insurance, employment-based health insurance, and governmental supporting funding (Bodenheimer & Grumbach, 2008).

In addition, there is not a universal coverage plan, therefore the services covered vary depending on the province and territorial governments. Moreover, there is no cost sharing for public coverage, out-of-pocket spending caps, and physicians are reimbursed in a fee-for-service rate (Mossialos, Wenzl, Osborn, and Sarnak, 2016, p. 22). Significantly, the use of electronic health records is not a standard in Canada, provinces have their system to keep records, but the implementation of electronic health records is not regulated. Equally important, patients have the liberty of choosing their providers,

The Commonwealth Fund (2017) states that Canada's health care system is a group of socialized health insurance plans that provide coverage to all Canadian citizens. Almost every Canadian citizen is entitled to free healthcare regardless of income or pre-existing conditions. Some exceptions include undocumented immigrants, people with expired VISAs, and those who “enter the country ‘illegally,’ are not covered by any federal or provincial program, although provinces and territories provide some limited services” (The Commonwealth Fund, 2017). Interestingly, the most unlikely members of society such as refugees and inmates in federal prisons receive additional health benefits (The Commonwealth Fund, 2017).

Canada 's health care system is a group of socialized health insurance plans that provides coverage to all Canadian citizens. It is publicly funded and administered on a provincial or territorial basis, within guidelines set by the federal government. Under the health care system, individual citizens are provided preventative care and medical treatments from primary care physicians as well as access to hospitals, dental surgery and additional medical services. With a few exceptions, all citizens qualify for health coverage regardless of medical history, personal income, or standard of living. In addition to public health care providers such as primary care doctors and hospitals, many private clinics offering specialized services also operate in Canada.