Public Health Agency of Canada’s 2026-27 Departmental Plan: Corporate information
Raison d'être, mandate and role: who we are and what we do
Mandate and Role
Information on the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)'s mandate and role is available on PHAC's website.
Raison d'être
Public health involves organized efforts to keep people healthy and to prevent illness, injury, and premature death. In Canada, these efforts are shared by all levels of government in collaboration with Indigenous rights-holders and partners, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, health professionals, and the public.
PHAC was created within the federal Health Portfolio to deliver on the Government of Canada's commitment to increase its focus on public health to help protect and improve the health and safety of all Canadians and strengthen public health capacities across Canada. To meet this objective, PHAC has put in place programs, services, and policies to help protect and promote the health of all Canadians and residents of Canada.
Operating context
PHAC operates in a complex, interconnected, and evolving environment where drivers such as social determinants of health, climate change, and advancements in technology affect the health of Canadians. PHAC continues to adapt to this ever-changing context to maintain its capacity to rapidly and effectively prevent, detect, and respond to emerging global and domestic public health events, keeping people across the country healthy and safe from emerging threats.
The recent COVID-19 pandemic reinforced the importance of PHAC's role in developing and implementing flexible, evidence-based public health policies, practices, programs and guidance at the federal level, taking into account social and economic considerations, as well as the multi-jurisdictional nature of health care in Canada.
While COVID-19 is no longer a public health emergency, as with other countries around the world Canada will continue to face other, more persistent public health challenges in the coming years. As our population lives longer, the rates of chronic diseases and conditions such as diabetes and dementia are increasing. Mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder continue to be of concern, with certain population groups being more vulnerable to mental health issues than others. Substance-related harms and deaths, especially related to opioids, remain significant, highlighting the necessity to address root causes, reduce stigma, and reduce the social and health harms of substance use.
Climate change also presents increased risks to the health status of Canadians, including heat exposure, poor air quality caused by wildfires, and the increasing spread of infectious and vector-borne diseases. PHAC is working to address these climate-related public health challenges at the population level, while acknowledging that climate change-related emergencies will impact certain populations more than others.
Health inequities and inequalities persist among segments of the Canadian population. Northern, rural, and remote communities, low-income families, children living in conditions of risk, Indigenous Peoples, unemployed or underemployed adults, and older adults continue to experience poorer health outcomes than the average Canadian. In addition, refugees and migrants continue to be disproportionately vulnerable to public health challenges. Consequently, PHAC continues to consider and address these enduring inequalities in its work.
Technological innovation presents new opportunities and challenges in addressing public health priorities in Canada and worldwide. Timely and reliable data are essential to developing sound policies, ensuring effective programming, delivering accurate information to people in Canada, and supporting wider government priorities. PHAC works with stakeholders as part of its continued commitment to facilitate evidence-informed decision making in public health. Technology also presents transformational opportunities and challenges in health communication. While allowing PHAC, health care organizations, and health care professionals to more freely share sound public health advice and information, social media has also given rise to mis- and disinformation, both of which contribute to growing vaccine hesitancy and distrust of science around the world and within Canada. This enduring spread of false information creates a barrier to managing the increasing rates of vaccine-preventable diseases among people in the country. Concurrently, Canadians are facing an increasing risk of antimicrobial resistance, which was identified by the World Health Organization as an important global concern. There is also a steady rise in sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections, such as HIV, hepatitis C, and syphilis, and PHAC is developing information for the public to advise on risks to help individuals protect themselves and their partners.
Public health is a shared responsibility in Canada, requiring coordination between the federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments and collaboration with Indigenous rights-holders and partners. By improving its understanding of the priorities, activities, and concerns of partners and stakeholders, PHAC adapts its programs, including those supported by grants and contributions, to respond to the diverse public health needs across Canada. PHAC's commitment to accountability, openness, and results helps promote important multi-sectoral collaborations and the solutions needed to help improve the health of people in Canada.