Canada's healthcare is administered by the provinces. Healthcare is not free, contrary to popular belief. It is tax payer funded. Most provinces collect health tax with personal income tax. The rate is depended on individual tax bracket and there is a maximum amount one has to pay as health tax.
Provinces play the role insurance administrator and regulator. They also owns the hospitals. Provinces' operation is non-profit. All other aspects of healthcare is for profit. Doctors have their own practices, with or without affiliation to hospitals. Labs and test centers operates on for-profit basis and they all bill the provincial health insurance. Patients usually never see the bill. The advantage of that is when patients come out of hospital, they are usually very generous in donating to hospital foundations. That money is used in improving the hospitals.
Some expense of healthcare are payed by the citizens. Prescription cost, ambulance are out of pocket expenses. Usually employer funded insurance covers those costs along with dental plan. Public plans are also available to low income and senior citizens.
Healthcare is a big portion of provincial budgets. Provincial governments are always eager to save money on healthcare. When pandemic came upon the population, it put a tremendous pressure on healthcare. Provincial leaders started a all out campaign against the spread of virus. The federal government worked in unison with provinces, because pandemic was having a toll on economy. The provinces and cities were asking for help from federal government, both on economy and in healthcare. There was no political conflict among three levels of government on fighting the pandemic. Science based advices was strictly followed. When frequent hand washing and social distancing was advised, all three government promoted.it. When wearing mask was advised, all three government campaigned together.
Interprovincial co-operation in fighting the disease was also praise worthy. Province of Alberta had excess PPE in the early days of pandemic due to the proactive action of a procurement officer. Alberta shared the excess inventory with other provinces.
Unlike in the US, the pandemic was never politicized in Canada. In the US, Trump downplayed the seriousness of Covid 19. He did not want Americans to panic. To him economy and stock market was more important than public health. He made not wearing mask a symbol of Republican party. Republican governors, senators and congressmen embraced it. There was clear lack of co-operation between republicans and democrats in fighting the pandemic. This sort of political scenario is almost unimaginable in Canada.
In the US healthcare is mostly run by for profit corporations. Health insurance providers are profitable companies which are always looking after their bottom line. A major portion of Americans do not have health insurance. And if someone does not have health insurance, they rely on county hospitals. Government run hospitals has long wait time. And, when pandemic hit. those hospitals just became overrun.
