Hospital Insurance and Diagnostic Services Act 1957

E778207

The Hospital Insurance and Diagnostic Services Act 1957 was a landmark Canadian federal law that laid the groundwork for universal, publicly funded hospital care and became a key precursor to the modern Medicare system in Canada.

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Statements (46)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Canadian federal statute
healthcare legislation
appliesTo provincial and territorial governments in Canada
beneficiaries Canadian residents
costSharingFormula federal government paid approximately half of eligible provincial hospital costs
country Canada
coverageType diagnostic services
in‑patient hospital services
laboratory services
radiological services
effect encouraged provinces to establish universal hospital insurance plans
expanded access to hospital services regardless of ability to pay
excludes most physician services outside hospitals
financing publicly funded
fundingModel federal‑provincial cost‑sharing
historicalSignificance first major step toward national Medicare in Canada
laid groundwork for universal hospital care in Canada
precursor to the Medical Care Act 1966
implementedBy federal Department of National Health and Welfare NERFINISHED
inForceLevel federal framework for provincial hospital insurance programs
inspiredBy Saskatchewan hospital insurance plan NERFINISHED
jurisdiction Canadian federal government (Ottawa)
surface form: Government of Canada
keyFeature federal grants to provinces for hospital insurance plans
introduced national standards for hospital insurance coverage
required provincial plans to be universal and comprehensive to receive funding
languageOfTitle English
French
legalForm Act of Parliament
policyArea public health insurance
policyPrinciple access to medically necessary hospital services without direct charges at point of use
comprehensiveness of insured hospital services
portability of hospital coverage across provinces
public administration of hospital insurance
universality of hospital coverage
policyType universal hospital insurance
politicalContext post‑World War II welfare state expansion in Canada
predecessorOf comprehensive Medicare system in Canada
purpose to establish a federal hospital insurance program
to provide federal cost‑sharing for provincial hospital insurance plans
to support universal publicly funded hospital care in Canada
relatedTo Canada Health Act NERFINISHED
Medical Care Act 1966 NERFINISHED
sector health care
shortName Hospital Insurance and Diagnostic Services Act NERFINISHED
typeOfCoverage first‑dollar coverage for insured hospital services
yearEnacted 1957

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Medicare (Canada) historicalMilestone Hospital Insurance and Diagnostic Services Act 1957