Healthcare in Canada is done by province -- there isn't a national system, just 10 different ones that have to comply with a federal mandate. They're all a lit

Healthcare in Canada is done by province -- there isn't a national system, just 10 different ones that have to comply with a federal mandate. They're all a little different. That said, as an American in Alberta I can confirm for sure that they'll make you pay up front here too. Cost out of pocket was much, much lower than it would be in the US, but certainly not trivial.