Tommy Douglas and the Quest for Medicare in Canada

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For a half century, Tommy Douglas fought to have universal health coverage for every Canadian. He was there from when Medicare was just an idea promoted by a new protest party in the 1930s until the passage of the Canada Health Act in 1984. He introduced hospital and medical care programs that worked so well in Saskatchewan that the same design was endorsed by the federal government and adopted by all provinces. Gregory P. Marchildon presents this dramatic and at times heart wrenching story. He also reveals some of the lesser known and fascinating parts of Douglas’ life and Medicare’s long evolution. For Douglas, however, Medicare remained an unfinished project. Canadians collective failure to continue improving and expanding Medicare helps explain the country’s current crisis.

Gregory P. Marchildon was born and raised in Saskatchewan where he first worked as a criminal trial lawyer and years later as cabinet secretary and deputy minister to Premier Roy Romanow. He was also the executive director of the federal Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada – the Romanow Commission. He has been a lecturer at the London School of Economics, professor at Johns Hopkins University and held research chairs at the University of Regina and the University of Toronto where he currently is Professor Emeritus. Greg is a member of the Order of Canada, a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. His book Tommy Douglas and the Quest for Medicare in Canada was published in 2025.