abstract
- Strong primary care is a fundamental underpinning of high-performing health systems. Sadly, primary care infrastructure and performance in canada lag behind many of our international peers. Although substantial reforms have been implemented over the past decade, progress has been uneven, and no province has all the essential system elements in place. Continued investment is both needed and affordable. However, whether those investments - and others necessary to strengthen medicare - are made will be determined largely by the ongoing clash between communitarian and libertarian values.