In Germany, patients can seek private care while still insured by the public system.
universal health care
Australia’s health-care system costs less than Canada’s yet delivers more rapid access to health-care services.
Canada ranked dead last on wait times for specialist care and non-emergency surgeries.
Among countries with universal health care, Canada has some of the lowest numbers of physicians, hospital beds and MRI machines.
The median wait time in Ontario last year (21.6 weeks) was more than twice as long as the 9.1-week wait in 1993.
Australia’s health-care system outperformed Canada’s on many measures including the availability of physicians and hospital beds.
Ottawa's plan won’t replace existing provincial and territorial programs that already cover some oral health services.
The province's average wait time for health care grew from 18.5 weeks in 2008 to 33.5 weeks in 2023.