Social Welfare In Canada

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A social welfare state is country with a way of governing in which the state takes an active role in protecting as well as promoting the social and economic prosperity of its citizens. There are many ways countries will do this, most commonly through promoting equal opportunity and distribution of wealth, supplying free health care; education; and affordable housing as well as many other social and economic programs designed to lend a hand to those in need. Primarily, the funding for these programs and services come from the tax dollars of the people. This brings out a main idea of a social welfare state: that the public should be responsible for those who are unable to supply for themselves their basic needs. A typical way to enforce this …show more content…

Most social programs are handled by the provinces and territories rather than the federal government but are funded with money granted to them on the federal level. A cornerstone of Canada's social welfare state is universal health care. It offers coverage for medically essential health care, which means that services are provided based on the urgency of the issue, rather than the ability of paying. Employment Insurance is another prime example of a Canadian social program, it offers benefits to employees who have had to miss work or have lost their jobs due to circumstances that were out of their control. Canada also offers a free public education in all provinces and territories up to grade 12 (ending a year earlier in Quebec). Although the school systems are funded by the federal government, curriculum, rules, and regulations are set by the provincial and territorial governments so there are slight differences in education across Canada. There are seemingly endless social welfare programs in Canada and the new federal budget has promised to further promote and protect the social and economic well-being of Canadians by taking steps to create more equality and

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