Dateline: 01/15/00

Major improvements are being made to Canada's military health care system.

The Minister of National Defence has announced changes that will:

• bring more civilian doctors into the armed forces
• re-organize all military health care resources under a Director General of Health Services, an administrator, not necessarily a physician. This will streamline the overly complex command structure and allow more effective coordination of personnel and assignments.
• provide full-time Canadian Forces members with a personalized health card
• establish a Project Management Office to implement a variety of administrative changes, and
• formalize a National Defence - Veterans Affairs Health Partnership.

The Canadian Forces have approximately 60,000 full-time personnel in all provinces and territories across Canada, as well as at missions outside Canada.

While Canadian military personnel may risk life and limb for Canada, and the Canada Health Act assures them the same level of health care services as the rest of Canadians, full-time Canadian Forces personnel are specifically excluded from coverage under provincial health care plans.

Their health care is provided by the Canadian Forces Military Services (CFMS), which is in effect the 14th medical health care system in Canada, along with the 13 provincial and territorial plans.

Spectrum of Care outlines the publicly funded health care benefits and services, both medical and dental, that are available to armed forces personnel and other eligible persons. It also identifies the services that are not publicly funded.

A 1999 review showed that morale and confidence in the CFMS was in a downward spiral. There were concerns about timeliness and access to medical services, regional inconsistencies, and poor administration. Continuity of care was a problem. Temporary medical categories were not well administered, the command structure was far too complex, and both the recruitment and retention of Medical Officers was becoming critical.

• Canadian Forces Health Services
• Canadian Health Care System
• Health in Canada
• Military Health Care in the United States