# Monique Bégin, who brought us the Canada Health Act, has died

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monique-begin-who-brought-us-the-canada-health-act-has-died/989931>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 11, 2023, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monique-begin-who-brought-us-the-canada-health-act-has-died/989931 "2023-09-11T12:55:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
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**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2023, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monique-begin-who-brought-us-the-canada-health-act-has-died/989931/1 "2023-09-11T12:55:00Z")

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The _Canada Health Act_ is the cornerstone of Canada’s Medicare system. It’s the federal statute that grants federal money to the provincial health system, on terms that make health care in Canada portable, accessible and universal.

The woman who shepherded it through Parliament was Monique Bégin, the Minister of Health in Pierre Trudeau’s Cabinet.

She was one of the first three women elected to the House of Commons from Quebec.

She died this weekend, aged 87.

Before politics, at age 31, she was the executive secretary on the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada, which reported in the late 60s and was groundbreaking in its recognition of the need for women’s equality in government and in society.

After politics, madame Bégin had a well-established career in academe.

She was named to the Order of Canada in recognition of her life-time of public service.

RIP, Madame, and thank you.

> **[Feminist pioneer Monique Bégin dies at 87 | CBC News](https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.6962053)**
>
> Former minister of health and welfare Monique Bégin died Friday at the age of 87. Bégin has played a major role in advancing women's rights in Canada, and in 1972 became one of the first three women from Quebec to ever be elected to the House of...

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**Author:** ![Eric1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3bc359/32.png) [@Eric1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eric1)\
**Post date:** [September 11, 2023, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/monique-begin-who-brought-us-the-canada-health-act-has-died/989931/2 "2023-09-11T21:42:27Z")

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She sounded like she had the follow-through that people remember. Being from the US I hadn’t known much about her before.