Equitable access to healthcare services and income replacement for cancer: is critical illness insurance a help or a hindrance?

Canada's publicly funded healthcare system ensures that medically necessary hospital and physician services are available without financial barriers, but not all community-based care is covered. Consequently, many patients experience financial shocks (FS) related to community-based healthcare services not funded by government, and perhaps also from lost income, a situation that may be difficult for patients to avoid. Critical illness insurance (CII) offers a patient-funded alternative to those who qualify and desire protection against FS, leaving those without CII exposed. The author discusses the benefits and limitations of CII to mitigate financially derived healthcare access inequities, using cancer as an example.