Canada Medicare System

Canada Medicare System (Healthcare)

In the 1960s the Canadian government introduced the Medicare system, as we know it today. This stemmed from the Saskatchewan Government, led by leader Tommy Douglas, introducing the first provincial hospital insurance program In Canada in 1947. In the last 40 years the fundamentals of the system have not changed drastically but we certainly are seeing major flaws in the system that has been described by many as Canada’s national treasure.

The Canadian Medicare system is not a system that provides 100% coverage. We still need to pay for prescription drugs in most cases. Dental and eye care are mostly provided by the private sector. We need to pay for certain medical procedures as well. But the positive thing about the system is that if we have catastrophic illnesses or need to see a doctor we are not denied based on income. There is certainly much debate going on how to improve the system, whether private services should be allowed, whether user fees should be implemented and other issues. Many people are against privatization of basic services and numerous attempts at introducing user fees proved not to work.

There is certainly a lot of abuse in the system. Some patients abuse the system, a few doctors are abusing the system, and large pharmaceutical companies play a factor on how healthcare is delivered. There is one known fact about the Canadian Medicare system, which some overlook and take for granted. Canada’s Medicare system is not free. It is paid for by hardworking Canadians like you and I in the form of taxes. We also have high taxes on liquor and tobacco to offset the cost of disease that these products have been known to cause on society.

We are offering you an opportunity to be heard with our blog on Medicare. Canada's national health insurance program, often referred to as "Medicare", is designed to ensure that all residents have reasonable access to medically necessary hospital and physician services, on a prepaid basis. Instead of having a single national plan, we have a national program that is composed of 13 interlocking provincial and territorial health insurance plans, all of which share certain common features and basic standards of coverage. In theory this plan works well, however over the last number of years the Canada Medicare system has been falling apart at the seams and has failed us many times over recent years.

Many Canadians do not have a family doctor and are at the mercy of this system.

Clinics have been set up to reduce the stress on hospitals. However, unless you have all day to sit on the phone and keep calling them, you will have a hard time getting an appointment, and when you do it can only be for smaller issues.

We are forced to wait in emergency rooms for hours on end to get health care. We often go from one waiting room to another and when we finally get to see the doctor we are stamped like we were on a conveyer belt and then sent home. It is not often the doctor's fault as you were one of the many people that he/she has seen that day.

Many experience long waits to see a specialist, get diagnostic tests and to undergo elective surgery. Others find themselves facing huge bills for prescription drugs they need to survive.

Please share your experiences with Medicare and health issues facing Canadians whether good or bad. We welcome all comments.

If you would like to see more topics or have an idea for a topic please email us, and we will do our best to create a topic, or you may write it yourself and we will give you the credit for it and put you name to it if you like, or you can remain anonymous, the choice is yours.

We would ask that you not use vulgar language, offensive, or racial comments, none of which will be allowed on the blog. We also will not allow comments that contain links to spam, porn or offensive or questionable content.

Please visit our blog to leave comments. Also be sure to email us if you have an ideas or suggestions for topics as well. We post new issues on a regular basis.

To leave comments click here