Invisible Patients of Rural Canada: Policy Options to Improve Healthcare Access for Temporary Foreign Workers in Rural Communities

Temporary Foreign Workers (TFWs) play a critical role in sustaining Canada’s economy, particularly in sectors experiencing persistentlabourshortages such as agriculture, food processing, construction, and healthcare. Since the establishment of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) in 1973, Canada has increasingly relied on migrantlabourto support essential industries across the country (House of Commons, 2016). In recent years, TFWs have contributedsubstantially tothe Canadian economy, including significant participation in rural industries wherelabourshortagesremainacute.