Organ Donation and Transplantation in the Canadian Healthcare System

Abstract

Healthcare in Canada differs significantly from that in the United States. All Canadians have access to healthcare, and all 10 provinces of Canada have universal healthcare insurance plans that cover hospitalization and physician care. Each province administers its own healthcare system financed on an equal basis with the federal government, and each provincial resident is issued a health card that must be presented at hospitals or physicians' offices whenever medical care is requested. Canadian healthcare provides coverage for organ and tissue donation, transplantation, and cyclosporine for life for all transplant recipients. Canadian healthcare encompasses four basic principles: (1) universal coverage, (2) comprehensive coverage, (3) accessible care for all Canadians, and (4) portability of care. Canada has no national organization for organ donation and transplantation. The organ donation rates in Canada have averaged 14.1 donors per million population over the last 5 years, and are unchanged from previous years.