Healthcare Policy and Management: Canada's System vs. US System

This report provides a comprehensive comparison of the healthcare systems in Canada and the United States, addressing key aspects such as funding mechanisms, coverage models, and policy implementations. The analysis begins by examining the Canadian universal healthcare system, highlighting its strengths in providing comprehensive coverage and its limitations, such as waiting times and the exclusion of certain services from public funding. The report then contrasts the Canadian system with the US healthcare model, emphasizing the differences in funding, with Canada's single-payer system versus the US's mix of public and private insurance. The report also delves into the roles of private insurance, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and the varying levels of access and affordability in both countries. The report concludes by presenting evidence-based comparisons, including the population coverage rates, funding strategies, and the impact of these differences on healthcare outcomes. Finally, the report references the differences between the ACA and the Canadian Medicare system.

Running head: FUNDAMENTALS OF HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT
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FUNDAMENTALS OF HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

FUNDAMENTALS OF HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT1
Answer 1
In Canada, healthcare system is currently being assessed and the quality care process are
being provided to the countrymen through federal system. Universal healthcare system in
Canada is effective and covers almost every section of the society so that the fundamental right if
each human can be preserved (Baldwin, 2011). However, there are several lacks in the coverage
system and few sections of healthcare system are not even covered under the public health
scheme. Such as for example, drug and home healthcare service are still not covered under the
public healthcare system. Further, there are sections in the healthcare system that allows outside
the country coverage only after receiving the approval from the local and central province.
Further, due to excessive demand of quality healthcare in Canada the painting time to receive
quality healthcare is one of the limiting factor for the healthcare in Canada and this situation is
also not covered under the universal healthcare coverage scheme (Brown, 2003).
While comparing these shortcomings of Canadian healthcare system with that of the
united States of America, it should be mentioned that the process of arranging travel insurance or
healthcare insurance for non-residential Americans is much more easier than Canada as do not
seek permission from the health ministry to approve the healthcare needs of travelers or
nonresidential (Faria, 2012). Further, as the healthcare related competition has decreased the
costs in USA, admission of patients in hospitals for quality healthcare has become easier in lower
prices. However, on the aspect of moral and cultural foundation of universal coverage, the
United States of America lacks behind Canada and there are a huge number of people who are
still not covered under any healthcare insurance and the amount is more than 40 million.

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Therefore, Canada is still improving its healthcare system and has started adopting new
management systems so that the healthcare system can be modified (Deber, 2003).
Answer 2
Healthcare or Medicare system in Canada is funded by public or government or single
payer healthcare system of Canada. This country does not have a single healthcare system
instead it is composed of 13 provinces and territorial healthcare insurance plans which aims to
provide the Canadian population, residents and some specific non-residents with medical
coverage through universal healthcare coverage (Martin et al., 2018). The publicly financed
healthcare is estimated to contribute by 11.1% in GDP and according to this stat more than 70%
of total healthcare costs are covered through public or governmental healthcare sources. The
primary source of healthcare funding in Canada are the general and territorial funding process
the public organization provides cash funding to the provinces and uses Canada health transfer
that determines more than 24% of total province and regions healthcare costs. Through this
public healthcare service, service, out pocket spacing on healthcare and cost-sharing and safety
nets are covered. These monies are obtained from central government public funds, the local and
province based funds, employers and their funds and from public and private combined funds
(Martin et al., 2018).
In case of Canada, the province and central government should agree to each-others terms
so that the fund sharing arrangements can be done in compliance with each other. However in
case of the United States of America, such funding process is replaced by the social insurance
strategy and USA believes that funding process are should be applied on single payer basis so
that rigidity in the process can be avoided. Further, without implementing Medicare or insurance

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coverage, implementation of cost cutting in healthcare system has increased the competition
between the healthcare systems. Hence, the healthcare and Medicare system of Canada is much
more effective and resolved that that of complex healthcare system of USA (Schneider &
Squires, 2017).
Answer 3
In the Canadian healthcare system, funding for healthcare and Medicare are one of the
important as according to the Healthcare related act of Canadian government, health insurance
plans must to informed and provided to all the provinces so that the entire population can go
through them and implement those plans to achieve secure and safe healthcare needs. Here the
role of federal government of Canada is important as it helps to set and administrate the national
principles for the entire system under the healthcare act of Canada (Arah et al., 2006).
Furthermore, the federal government provides funding by cash to the entire provinces after
collecting taxes further there are several public healthcare systems that provides funding related
help to all the provinces irrespective of the size and capital present in those provinces. Therefore,
each province had similar and equal amount of funding as the federal government believed in
equalization payments of the resources. Further the federal government is also responsible for the
maintenance of health related regulation and protection and for that it also regulates
pharmaceutical products, food and medical devices, and observes disease surveillance and
prevention to protect the populations right to attain quality healthcare.
As the rising healthcare related costs are one of the emerging issues the USA is facing
currently, funding providers for healthcare or Medicare also had to suffer several issues in the
entire system. The healthcare profession is more lucrative and single provider basis in USA,

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therefore maximum of the healthcare professionals are not covered or acquired through a public
healthcare firm. Therefore, the healthcare system are not forced to join any healthcare or
Medicare funding system. Therefore, the healthcare system is not inclusive of public and private
healthcare system that cooperates each other for the growth and development of the healthcare
service in each prospect. Hence, in this aspect Canadian healthcare system is again better than
that of the USA healthcare system.
Answer 4
There are several private organizations, that have invested in the healthcare insurance in
Canada, such as sun life, Canada AXA health insurance and According to the Canadian
healthcare related acts, the countrymen are allowed to purchase an supplementary healthcare
coverage service that are not covered under their public healthcare scheme (Arah et al., 2006).
However, those people who are not covered under any public health insurance, are not allowed
to buy private healthcare insurance. As this is one of the crucial part of Canadian healthcare
system, only private coverage for healthcare purpose are not allowed. Hence, in the Canadian
healthcare system, people having public healthcare insurance plan can buy private healthcare
insurance to complement their other complications. According to the Schneider & Squires,
(2017), more the $4.3 billion USD are been used by the private healthcare facilities in Canada.
However, in USA, people can buy any of the healthcare coverage from the market, as due
to competition, there are companies that are providing maximum health coverage at minimum
costs. Most of the healthcare related insurances covers employees and workers in USA and
therefore as low as $89 dollar healthcare insurance plan is available in USA. In this case Canada
still manages the system properly, as those healthcare private insurances companies are covered

FUNDAMENTALS OF HEALTH POLICY AND MANAGEMENT5
under public healthcare coverage, therefore, in any case the government is paying the payable
amount (Brown, 2003).
Answer 5
There are number of evidences, provided in the previous sections that provide an ideal
universal healthcare model as compared to the USA healthcare system. According to Arah et al.,
(2006), the Canadian healthcare system is focused to cover the entire population, and few of the
non-residents through healthcare coverage system, whereas more than 40 million population of
USA are still not covered under any healthcare system (Schneider & Squires, 2017). The
Affordable care Act or Obama care tries to comply with the healthcare system of Canada to
come extent. However there are five differences that still can be identified such as ACA still not
covers universal users as we’ll as it does not inclusive of single payer. Further, it does not
provide equal access to everyone and depending on Socio-economic status, Medicare is provided
and the system is not a national health insurance or mandatory. Therefore, these are the
differences in provision of ACA and Canadian Medicare system (Faria, 2012).

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References
Arah, O. A., Westert, G. P., Hurst, J., & Klazinga, N. S. (2006). A conceptual framework for the
OECD health care quality indicators project. International Journal for Quality in Health
Care, 18(suppl_1), 5-13.
Baldwin, S. (2011). HEALTHCARE SYSTEMS AROUND THE WORLD. Global Health
(1937-514X), 4(1).
Brown, L. D. (2003). Comparing health systems in four countries: lessons for the United
States. American Journal of Public Health, 93(1), 52-56.
Deber, R. B. (2003). Health care reform: Lessons from Canada. American Journal of Public
Health, 93(1), 20-24.
Faria, M. A. (2012). ObamaCare: Another step toward corporate socialized medicine in the
US. Surgical neurology international, 3.
Martin, D., Miller, A. P., Quesnel-Vallée, A., Caron, N. R., Vissandjée, B., & Marchildon, G. P.
(2018). Canada's universal health-care system: achieving its potential. The Lancet.
Schneider, E. C., & Squires, D. (2017). From last to first—could the US health care system
become the best in the world?. New England Journal of Medicine, 377(10), 901-904.