I don't think that any of the candidates have explained how private insurance could work in parallel. Most countries have that, including Canada.
All of your healthcare needs are covered under the provincial healthcare plans, with the exception of prescription drugs, ancillary services like physiotherapy, massage therapy, speech pathology, medical devices (crutches, glucose meters, etc), optometry and dentistry.
Low income individuals have subsidized prescription drugs and children in Ontario under 18 have free prescription drugs as well (not sure if it's extended to other provinces). For all those other things, we have private insurance - provided by our employers and we co-pay into it. For my family of 4, I pay something like $50 off my biweekly paycheques. The employers match and you then end up with coverage that varies based on the provider, plan, etc. For example, my dental is 90% covered, and I have $600/year to spend on services like massage therapy, chiro, physio (each service has the $600 annual limit). The private insurance also pays for semi-private accommodations at hospitals and it's cheap to upgrade to private (I believe I paid $35/night). People who are self-employed can opt into their own insurance which is obviously more expensive since they don't have employers matching, so many of them do not and instead pay out of pocket for ancillary services and drugs.
What we don't have is private insurance in the actual healthcare space, competing with public hospitals, clinics, etc.
All of your healthcare needs are covered under the provincial healthcare plans, with the exception of prescription drugs, ancillary services like physiotherapy, massage therapy, speech pathology, medical devices (crutches, glucose meters, etc), optometry and dentistry.
Low income individuals have subsidized prescription drugs and children in Ontario under 18 have free prescription drugs as well (not sure if it's extended to other provinces). For all those other things, we have private insurance - provided by our employers and we co-pay into it. For my family of 4, I pay something like $50 off my biweekly paycheques. The employers match and you then end up with coverage that varies based on the provider, plan, etc. For example, my dental is 90% covered, and I have $600/year to spend on services like massage therapy, chiro, physio (each service has the $600 annual limit). The private insurance also pays for semi-private accommodations at hospitals and it's cheap to upgrade to private (I believe I paid $35/night). People who are self-employed can opt into their own insurance which is obviously more expensive since they don't have employers matching, so many of them do not and instead pay out of pocket for ancillary services and drugs.
What we don't have is private insurance in the actual healthcare space, competing with public hospitals, clinics, etc.
Luckily i have 3 more days for this special sale, so i decided to sit back and relax and cheer on the marchers (been on the side lines before, and marched as well back in ?80's/90's).
