Quebec | The PWD Forum

A relative is planning to migrate to Canada this year.

I also know of three others who recently did so, and another one who have just done that.

All of them have the same reason, though: they’re after the healthcare services of Canada.

Healthcare in Canada is delivered through a publicly funded health care system. The doctors in its 10 provinces—Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan—are the ones who handle the insurance claim against the provincial insurer so there’s no need for the patients there to mind their bills.

There is a health card issued by the Provincial Ministry of Health to its residents who applies for the program. Health coverage would not be denied to those who suddenly lose their jobs, and there are no lifetime limits or exclusions for pre-existing conditions.

Canada is the only country in the world with this kind of universal healthcare system to date. But adherence to this 1984 legislation is voluntary. The Canada Health Act (CHA) does not cover the medical expenses for prescription drugs, home care or long-term care, prescription glasses, dental care, and cosmetic surgery. It is also left to the provinces to determine if the medical service is essential, where it should be taken, how it should be administered, and who should provide the services.

Canadian PWDs

About 3.8 million Canadians (or 13.7% of its 2012 population) have disabilities.

Four percent are ages 15 to 24 years old while 42.5% are ages 75 years old and over. There are more female PWDs than male, impaired by pain, flexibility, and mobility.

Still, Canada provides financial assistance and support for them. It would allot $222 million each year to its provinces and territories through the Labor Market Agreements for Persons with Disabilities (LMAPDs). Its Economic Action Plan 2013 proposes to maintain an ongoing fund of $40 million annually starting next year for the Opportunities Fund for Persons with Disabilities (OF).

It also has the disability tax credit (DTC) for Canadian PWDs with severe and prolonged impairments. It gives a tax-free benefit—child disability benefit (CDB)—to families who care for Canadian PWDS under 18 years old eligible for DTC.

“Equality is the public recognition, effectively expressed in institutions and manners, of the principle that an equal degree of attention is due to the needs of all human beings.” Simone Weil