Summary: The Canadian Health Care System

The Canada’s health care system is very interesting in the fact that it is government-funded and individuals are provided preventative care, medical treatments, dental surgery and other medical services with few exceptions. All citizens qualify for health coverage regardless of medical history, personal income or their standard of living. Medicare is Canada is a government funded universal health insurance established by legislation passed in 1957, 1966, and 1984. The Canadian healthcare system evolved, rising cost of hospital and medical services led citizens, progressive health professionals and some politicians to argue that healthcare was a social good not another purchasable commodity. This viewpoint was challenged by those who stated

In the twentieth-century, the distribution of the population was 3 tiered and there was a large number of younger people than older people. Now in 2016 the population structure is difference because of a result of the decrease in fertility and the steady increase of life expectancy among individuals. In 2006 a low percentage of the population consisted of young people under the age of 15. There was also a low percentage of individuals 65 years and over. There was a high rate of people between the ages of 15-64. At these rates the population shows a projection of the elderly that may well exceed the population of children and young adults. Over the next 50 years the work group will consist of individuals which are similar to what it looked like in the 1960s. The aging of baby-boomers has caused a decline in the number of young adults compared to those individuals retiring. Canada is considered to be one of the youngest industrialized countries in the world. They have fewer senior citizens and more people in its population. The minority population of Canada has elevated and the number of people belonging to a minority group went from 1 million to 4 million. By 2017 the minority population is going to reach 7 million which will represent 1Canadian to

The five main principles in the Canada Health Act include Public Administration where all the administration of provincial health insurance must be carried out by a public authority on a non-profit basis. Another principle is Comprehensiveness which all heath services must be insured. This includes hospitals, physicians and surgical dentist. Under Universality all insured residents are entitled to the same level of care which makes the patients feel that they are getting the care that they truly need. With Portability residents that move to a different province or territory are still entitled to coverage from their home province with a waiting period. This also applies to residents which leave the country. This ensures that residents don’t have to worry about finding a new doctor or wonder if they will be treated. Lastly Accessibility is where insured’s have reasonable access to healthcare facilities. In addition to patient having access, physicians and hospitals must also be provided reasonable compensation for any and all services provided. To access Canada’s healthcare individuals have to apply for a provincial health card. All residents of a province or territory are accepted for coverage under the Canada Health Act with the exception of inmates and the Canadian Armed Forces. One the