Funding
Funding for the insurance plans comes from the general revenues of the Canadian provinces/territories, assisted by transfer payments from the federal government through the Canada Health Transfer. Some provinces charge health care premiums, but these are in effect taxes (since they are not tied to service use, nor to provincial health expenditures). The system is accordingly classified by the OECD as a tax-supported system, as opposed to the social insurance approaches used in many European countries. Currently, patients do not pay out of pocket costs to visit their doctor. Boards in each province regulate the cost, which is then reimbursed by the federal government.
Read more about this topic: Medicare (Canada)