Almost one in six Canadians are in debt because of health-care costs, owing more than triple that of Australians, according to a recent cross-country survey.
Younger generations from both countries were most likely to go into debt. The poll found Canada had the widest gender gap in health care-related debt among the three countries: 20 per cent of Canadian women had gone into debt for medical bills, compared to 15 per cent of men. In Canada, universal access to dental care is set to be fully implemented by 2025. Children under the age of 12 who are from lower-income families are currently eligible to receive a children's dental benefit through the Canada Revenue Agency. Rolled out last fall, the benefit provides families with up to $650 per child, and was the first step toward creating a national dental care program, a key promise in the Liberals' confidence-and-supply agreement with the NDP.
Dentists urge caution not to undermine existing dental plans Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer has said the current dental benefit is superficial, and that handing out cash could contribute to inflation and make the cost of living worse.