Federal election town hall: Demanding a health system that works
Press Release
March 5, 2025
Canada’s political landscape is in flux: the year started with the prorogation of Parliament, a Liberal leadership race and upheaval south of the border.
With voters likely heading to the polls soon, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) held a virtual town hall bringing together physicians, patients, health professionals, policy-makers and health advocates.
“It’s always tough to put health care on the agenda in a federal election. With everything happening in Canada and the world, it’ll be harder than ever this year. That means we are going to need the help of everyone on this call to help bring attention to health care,” said CMA CEO Alex Munter, who moderated the virtual conversation on Mar. 3.
Election 2025: Strengthening Canada’s health care
CMA President Dr. Joss Reimer said a federal election creates key opportunity to work with all parties and candidates to identify solutions for health care.
“Count on us to make the case for health solutions throughout the federal election, including how to combat false information, promote physician mobility, drive down paperwork and support our health workforce,” she said.
CEO of Abacus Data David Coletto shared insights on the latest public opinion data, highlighting a “scarcity mindset” among voters who are concerned about issues like cost of living and housing affordability.
“Regardless of your age, what part of the country you live in, your socio-economic or cultural background, the things you need in your life are more expensive and harder to get,” he said. “If you have them, you are deeply worried you are going to lose them.”
“Having access to a primary care provider is the perfect example of that.”
An estimated 6.5 million Canadians don’t have access to a family doctor.
Mr. Coletto said recent polling showed close to four in 10 Canadians say they think the health care system in their province is poor, and 43% of Canadians think the health system is getting worse.
“There are millions of Canadians who are not happy with the state of the system,” he said.
He noted scarcity is creating a deep desire for political change — and things are changing fast.
“Things are far more volatile and Canadians are far more open-minded to be persuaded about their choices than they have been in over two years,” he said.
How you can advocate for health reform:
- Sign up to stay updated on our federal election advocacy
- Visit cma.ca/get-involved
- Join the CMA Health Summit Opens in a new window on Mar. 27–28 in Ottawa
- Take an accredited course in health care advocacy
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