The Canada Health Act stands as the legislative foundation of Canadian medicare—the framework that transformed a patchwork of provincial experiments into a national commitment to universal healthcare. Passed in 1984, the Act consolidated and strengthened earlier legislation, establishing the five principles that define Canadian healthcare to this day: public administration, comprehensiveness, universality, portability, and accessibility. Yet understanding what the Act actually does—and what it doesn't do—reveals both the strengths and limitations of Canada's approach to health policy.