Healthcare in Canada is delivered through the provincial and territorial systems of publicly funded health care, informally called Medicare. It is guided by the provisions of the Canada Health Act of 1984, and is universal. The 2002 Royal Commission, known as the Romanow Report, revealed that Canadians consider universal access to publicly funded health services as a "fundamental value that ensures national health care insurance for everyone wherever they live in the country".

Canadian Medicare provides coverage for approximately 70 percent of Canadians' healthcare needs, and the remaining 30 percent is paid for through the private sector. The 30 percent typically relates to services not covered or only partially covered by Medicare, such as prescription drugs, eye care, medical devices, gender care, psychotherapy, physical therapy and dentistry. About 65-75 percent of Canadians have some form of supplementary health insurance related to the aforementioned reasons; many receive it through their employers or use secondary social service programs related to extended coverage for families receiving social assistance or vulnerable demographics, such as seniors, minors, and those with disabilities.

According to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), by 2019, Canada's aging population represents an increase in healthcare costs of approximately one percent a year, which is a modest increase. In a 2020 Statistics Canada Canadian Perspectives Survey Series (CPSS), 69 percent of Canadians self-reported that they had excellent or very good physical health—an improvement from 60 percent in 2018. In 2019, 80 percent of Canadian adults self-reported having at least one major risk factor for chronic disease: smoking, physical inactivity, unhealthy eating or excessive alcohol use. Canada has one of the highest rates of adult obesity among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries attributing to approximately 2.7 million cases of diabetes (types 1 and 2 combined). Four chronic diseases—cancer (a leading cause of death), cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases and diabetes account for 65 percent of deaths in Canada. There are approximately 8 million individuals aged 15 and older with one or more disabilities in Canada.

In 2021, the Canadian Institute for Health Information reported that healthcare spending reached $308 billion, or 12.7 percent of Canada's GDP for that year. In 2022 Canada's per-capita spending on health expenditures ranked 12th among healthcare systems in the OECD. Canada has performed close to the average on the majority of OECD health indicators since the early 2000s, and ranks above average for access to care, but the number of doctors and hospital beds are considerably below the OECD average. The Commonwealth Funds 2021 report comparing the healthcare systems of the 11 most developed countries ranked Canada second-to-last. Identified weaknesses of Canada's system were comparatively higher infant mortality rate, the prevalence of chronic conditions, long wait times, poor availability of after-hours care, and a lack of prescription drugs coverage. An increasing problem in Canada's health system is a shortage of healthcare professionals and hospital capacity.

In January 2025, Health Minister Mark Holland issued a formal statement underscoring that Canadians are facing significant systemic challenges within publicly funded healthcare, including:

As a response, the federal government negotiated historic bilateral agreements with provinces and territories worth $200 billion over ten years, targeting:

The launch of the Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) - the first universal dental benefit - has already served over 1.2 million Canadians lacking coverage, aiming to reduce avoidable long-term health burdens. Alongside this, the federal pharmacare rollout makes key diabetes drugs and contraceptives freely available to reduce financial barriers to essential medications.

A central policy development - the "CHA Services Policy", announced in an interpretation letter dated January 10, 2025—expands the definition of insured "medically necessary" services to include those administered by nurse practitioners, pharmacists, midwives, and other regulated providers starting April 1, 2026. Any patient charges for those services will be classified as extra-billing, subject to Canada's Health Act penalties if not addressed. The policy also mandates reporting of patient charges by December 2028, with the potential for federal funding deductions from non-compliant provinces.