Provincial Health Insurance in Canada
Lesson 3 of 11 in Insurance & the Canadian Healthcare System · 25 minutes
Read about how Canada's public healthcare system works. Learn what provincial health insurance covers, how to apply, and when coverage starts in your province.
What you'll learn
- Understand how public healthcare works in Canada
- Know what provincial health insurance covers and does not cover
- Know when coverage starts in Ontario and why some provinces still have a waiting period
From the lesson
Provincial Health Insurance in Canada
Canada has a public healthcare system. Most basic medical services are free for residents. But there is no single national health card. Each province and territory runs its own health insurance plan, with its own rules. In Ontario, the plan is called OHIP (Ontario Health Insurance Plan). In British Columbia, it is MSP (Medical Services Plan). In Alberta, it is AHCIP (Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan). In Quebec, it is RAMQ. Quebec also requires everyone to have prescription drug insurance, either through work or through RAMQ's public plan.
In this lesson, we use Ontario as the main example. The rules in your province may be different, so always check…