Canada has a public health-care system known as "medicare." It provides insurance coverage for health-care services to all Canadian citizens and permanent residents.(You will be a "permanent resident.") The federal government sets health-care standards for the whole country, but the programs are run by the provincial ministries of health. More information on the healthcare system can be found in chapter 4.
: Apply for provincial health-care coverage as soon as possible after you arrive in the province where you plan to live.
Note: British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick have a three-month waiting
period before you become eligible for medicare coverage. If you are planning to settle in any of these provinces, you should buy private health insurance coverage for the first three months. Insurance companies are listed in the Yellow Pages of all Canadian telephone books, under "Insurance."
: Bring a supply of your medications with you to allow you time to find a family doctor in Canada from whom you will have to get new prescriptions.
