Who pays for Canadian health care?

Provinces and territories are responsible for the management, organization and delivery of health care services. The federal government provides some funding through the Canada Health Transfer and is responsible for setting and administering national standards of care through the Canada Health Act.

What health care does the federal government pay for?  

The federal government contributes through the Canada Health Transfer to help provinces and territories pay for health care. This amount was $49.4 billion in 2023–2024, representing about 22% of what provinces and territories spend on health care. Ottawa also provides targeted funding for select services like mental health, home care and primary care through bilateral agreements with provinces and territories. It also provides health care directly to certain groups, including:  

• First Nations Peoples living on reserves and Inuit 
• Members and veterans of the military  
• People incarcerated in federal prisons 
• Certain refugees seeking safety in Canada

What health care are provinces and territories responsible for?

Under the Canada Health Act, provinces and territories deliver “medically necessary” health care.

What is covered:  

• Hospital services including emergency care, surgery and anesthesia, lab tests and imaging like X-rays and ultrasounds, and any other medications, treatments or procedures provided in hospitals.
• Physician services including visiting your family doctor, seeing a specialist or visiting a walk-in clinic.  
• Provinces and territories also fund a range of other health services, including prescription drug coverage for seniors and social assistance recipients, mental health and addiction services, home care and long-term care. Since these services are not part of the Canada Health Act, there are no national standards on who is covered and how much patients have to pay out of pocket.

What health care isn’t covered in Canada?  

That depends on where you live. Most provinces and territories don’t cover:  

• Medications outside the hospital for groups other than seniors and social assistance recipients. That includes prescription drugs and medicines you can buy off the shelf or from behind the counter at a pharmacy. Currently, Canada is the only developed country with universal health care that doesn’t cover prescription drugs. In 2024, the Government of Canada Introduced legislation for the first phase of National Universal Pharmacare, a publicly funded, nationwide health care insurance program to subsidize the cost of prescription drugs.
• Mental health services, depending on who provides it. You won’t pay for services provided by a doctor or in a hospital, but you will for most other counselling and psychotherapy.   
  • Dive deeper: What mental health services are covered in Canada?
• Dental care. Aside from rare procedures performed in hospitals – like fracture repairs, tumor removals or reconstructive surgery – most dental services are not publicly covered. Launched in December 2023, the Canadian Dental Care Plan is a federally delivered public plan for eligible Canadian residents. Read about eligibility.
• Vision care. Some provinces and territories cover eye exams for children, seniors and those with certain medical conditions like diabetes or glaucoma. But most people pay out of pocket for glasses, contact lenses and corrective eye surgery.  
• Physiotherapy and rehabilitation following injuries or hospitalization may be covered in some parts of Canada, but typically are not.  
• Long-term care and home care. Some governments pay a portion of the cost of care for people who can’t live fully independently.  

Dive deeper: How is health care funded in Canada?