(Angus Reid Global Scan) – Adults in Canada are divided on the prospects of their medical services, according to a poll by Ipsos-Reid released by CanWest Global. 50 per cent of respondents believe the recent Supreme Court ruling will lead to American-style healthcare in Canada, while 46 per cent disagree.
(Angus Reid Global Scan) – Adults in Canada are divided on the prospects of their medical services, according to a poll by Ipsos-Reid released by CanWest Global. 50 per cent of respondents believe the recent Supreme Court ruling will lead to American-style healthcare in Canada, while 46 per cent disagree.
In Canada, the universality criterion establishes that all residents of a province or territory must be entitled to the insured, public-run health services provided by their provincial or territorial health care insurance plan on uniform terms and conditions.
On Jun. 9, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that forbidding residents of Quebec from getting private insurance for services that are not covered by the country’s universal health care system is a violation of the province’s Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.
Prime minister Paul Martin ruled out any immediate changes to federal programs, saying, “We’re not going to have a two-tier health care system in this country. (…) Our purpose is to strengthen our universal public system and to provide timely access to medical services.”
Martin promised to invest $6.6 billion U.S. to improve Canada’s health care system and reduce waiting times for critical services. 41 per cent of respondents believe the current prime minister would do the best job in dealing with this new challenge, while 30 per cent prefer Conservative leader Stephen Harper.
Polling Data
Do you think the Supreme Court ruling will lead to American-style healthcare in Canada?
Strongly agree | 29% |
Somewhat agree | 21% |
Somewhat disagree | 19% |
Strongly disagree | 27% |
Don’t know | 4% |
Which federal party leader do you believe would do the best job of dealing with this new challenge to the future of our health care system?
Paul Martin (Lib.) | 41% |
Stephen Harper (Con.) | 30% |
Neither | 22% |
Don’t know | 6% |
Source: Ipsos-Reid / CanWest Global
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,002 Canadian adults, conducted from Jun. 16 to Jun. 18, 2005. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
