In Canada, all citizens have the majority of their health care costs covered by one insurer – the provincial government. In Montreal, this means that any citizen can walk into a hospital and receive free medical treatment including consultation, surgery and even some kinds of psychological care. The province and the federal government use a portion of the sizeable amount of taxes collected each year to fund this system.
How does it work?
In Quebec, each citizen is given a “Carte Soleil” or Medicare card. The card is issued by the RAMQ, which translates into the Ministry of Medicine for Quebec. This card is the passport to Quebec’s medical care system, and people must present it each time they visit a doctor who is part of the public system. The card tracks the number of visits a patient makes to each clinic or doctor and then uses that information to manage funding and resources throughout the system. Doctors are all paid by the provincial government, and they are not permitted to charge any extra fees for any items covered by Medicare.
How is health care managed?
Quebec has a somewhat unique system of clinics called CLSCs, which are used to provide healthcare to a specific region or population. For non-emergency care, citizens are encouraged to call a hotline called “Info-Sante” (info-health) in order to speak to a nurse about their problem or question. The nurse can give advice and also help make an appointment at the closest CLSC. CLSCs are generally staffed by nurses and a rotating group of doctors, and they also provide walk-in patient service.
There are also a large number of “private” clinics in Quebec. These clinics can be divided into two categories: those whose doctors are part of the Medicare system and those who have opted out of Medicare and charge patients directly for their services. The majority of these clinics fall into the first category and are private only in the sense that they are self-managed. Private clinics can also function as a collection of specialists in a certain area, such as rhumatology or ophthalmology for example.
For emergency healthcare, the best option is to head to the emergency room at any major hospital. Hospitals also handle the majority of surgery cases in the province, although there are some private surgical practices.
What isn’t covered by Medicare
Medicare coverage is comprehensive, but it does have some limitations. Prescription drugs are not covered by Medicare in Quebec, but are instead part of a provincial drug insurance plan that has a yearly premium for each citizen as well as a monthly service fee. It is possible to opt out of this plan if your place of business offers prescription drug coverage, which is not uncommon. Prescription drugs are also heavily subsidized in Quebec and their prices are quite low when compared to the global market. Dentistry and eye care such as prescription lenses or contacts are also not generally covered by Medicare but fall under the coverage of private insurance.
