How coverage works here: Canada.

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How coverage works here: Canada

Handout · moraph.org/commons/sessions/reach/how-coverage-works-here

This sheet explains how health care gets paid for, in general and where you live. It is general information, not medical advice or advice on choosing a plan.

Four ways care gets paid for

A public system, paid for through taxes.
Public programs for particular groups.
Insurance, through work or bought yourself.
Paying yourself at the point of care.

The words

Premium: what you pay to be covered.
Deductible or excess: what you pay before cover starts.
Co-payment or coinsurance: your share of each visit or prescription.
Out-of-pocket cost: anything you pay yourself.

Before you get care, ask

Is this covered, and is anything not?
Do I need a referral or a particular provider?
What will I pay, and does anything need approval first?

Stay safe

If it might be an emergency, call the emergency number first.
Real programs don’t cold-call to sell cover or ask for your details.
Check anything you’re unsure about on the official sites below.

In Canada

Each province has its own plan. Canada has a universal system funded through taxes. Eligible residents apply to their own province or territory’s health insurance plan, which decides who counts as a resident and what is covered.
What the public plans cover. All the plans cover medically necessary hospital and doctor services. Once you are registered you get a health card, which you show at hospitals and clinics.
What they usually don’t. Public plans usually don’t pay for eye care or glasses, dental care, prescription medicines outside hospital, or ambulance services. Provinces and territories give extra help to some groups, such as seniors, children and people on social assistance.
There may be a wait. For newcomers it can take up to three months for public coverage to start, depending on the province. In Ontario, for example, there is no longer a waiting period for OHIP; in British Columbia, coverage may start about three months after arrival.
Refugees and claimants. The Interim Federal Health Program gives limited, temporary coverage to some refugees and refugee claimants until they qualify for provincial or territorial coverage.

Official places to check:

Health Canada: www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/canada-health-care-system.html
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada: www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/settle-canada/health-care.html
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada: www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/settle-canada/health-care/universal-system.html
Government of Ontario: www.ontario.ca/page/apply-ohip-and-get-health-card
Government of British Columbia: www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/health-drug-coverage/msp/bc-residents/eligibility-and-enrolment/how-to-enrol
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada: www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/refugees/help-within-canada/health-care/interim-federal-health-program.html

General information, not advice about your own situation. Checked 19 October 2026. If an official source says something different, it is right. Free to copy and adapt. moraph.org/commons/sessions/reach/how-coverage-works-here