The Canadian Healthcare System

Vocabulary flashcards covering the structure, principles, administration, and key concepts of the Canadian healthcare system.

Universal Healthcare

A system where access to care is granted to all residents based on level of need rather than the ability to pay.

Canada Health Act

The governing legislation of Canadian healthcare designed to protect, promote, and restore physical and mental well-being and provide reasonable access to health services without financial or other barriers.

Provincial Healthcare Administration

The framework where healthcare is unified nationally under the Canada Health Act but organized and managed at the provincial level.

Private Insurance

Supplemental coverage used to pay for service gaps not covered by the government and required when receiving healthcare outside of Canada.

Tommy Douglas

The Saskatchewan Premier who proposed an alternate healthcare system after observing that insurance companies refused to pay for the sick and elderly.

Single-Payer System

A healthcare model funded by taxes in which the government pays for medical expenses.

Manitoba Healthcare Political Cycle

An electoral pattern where the NDP increases taxes to fund healthcare, voters elect the PC to lower taxes (leading to spending cuts), and voters then re-elect the NDP due to poor healthcare quality.

Two-Tiered System

A healthcare delivery framework divided into a government-supported public tier and a paid private tier.

Public Tier

The government-funded tier of healthcare that experiences long lines and diminished quality as a result of being underfunded.

Private Tier

A tier paid out-of-province that provides access to exclusive facilities, updated equipment, and shorter lines.