Making Medicare: The History of Health Care in Canada, 1914-2007 Back to Timeline Back to Timeline
History: 1948-1958 NATIONAL SYSTEM, NATIONAL FAILURE? : WAR, RECONSTRUCTION AND HEALTH SECURITY FOR CANADIANS, 1939–1948 PUBLIC OR PRIVATE? VOLUNTARY OR COMPULSORY? : HOSPITAL CARE FOR CANADIANS, 1948–1958 CONFLICT AND COMPROMISE: CREATING THE MEDICAL CARE AC, 1958–1968



Politics and History

But Martin was not to reap the rewards of his decade of effort. The Liberals were defeated by John Diefenbaker and the Progressive Conservatives in June 1957 and the new government became responsible for implementing the act. Following further federal–provincial negotiations, the six-province requirement was dropped, and on July 1, 1958 Newfoundland, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia all received federal payments because they had hospital insurance programs that met the federal requirements. After additional acrimonious federal–provincial conflict regarding the definition of universal coverage, Ontario joined on January 1, 1959, along with Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Prince Edward Island joined on October 1, 1959 and Quebec on January 1, 1961.

Photo: Leslie Frost, Ontario’s premier, and J. Waldo Monteith, Minister of National Health and Welfare, sign the national Hospital Insurance Agreement in 1958.

Leslie Frost, Ontario’s premier, and J. Waldo Monteith, Minister of National Health and Welfare, sign the national Hospital Insurance Agreement in 1958. Because of the change in government, Paul Martin, Sr. did not play a role in the agreement’s implementation.
Archives of Ontario, RG 10-65, 1982-08291/20

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    Date Created: March 31, 2010 | Last Updated: April 21, 2010