How Health Canada’s New Regulations Threaten Indigenous Healing Practices

June 21 Is National Indigenous Peoples Day

National Indigenous Peoples Day is a day to honour the cultures, languages and contributions of the First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples. But this year, while an official statement from Prime Minister Mark Carney reports celebrating “the histories, cultures, languages, knowledge, and traditions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Peoples”,¹ Health Canada is slowly pushing through new regulations that will cause lasting harm. 

Plant medicines and traditional healing practices lay at the heart of many Indigenous communities. “These practices include using ceremonies, plant, animal or mineral-based medicines, energetic therapies and physical or hands-on techniques”, to both promote health and treat chronic illness.²

This wealth of knowledge has been cultivated, protected and passed down for generations.

But Now Traditional Healing Practices Are At Risk

Health Canada’s new approach for regulating natural health products will have serious consequences as it relates to accessing traditional medicines.

By introducing costly new fees, stricter compliance rules and pharmaceutical-style fines onto the natural health industry, Health Canada could make many natural health products and traditional medicines unaffordable or inaccessible, including those used by Indigenous Peoples.

Not only that, small Indigenous businesses that produce and sell traditional medicines may be unable to meet new costs and requirements, leading to their closure. And with their closure, we risk the loss of ancestral wisdom and cultural healing practices.

The Truth And Reconciliation Commission Calls To Action urges the Canadian government to respect and incorporate traditional Indigenous healing practices into the healthcare system and provide cultural competency training for healthcare professionals.³ In fact, according to Statistics Canada “the majority of First Nations people living off reserve (86%), Métis (70%) and Inuit (82%) reported that it was very or somewhat important to have health care services that support Indigenous traditional medicines, healing and wellness practices.”⁴

Yet, under Health Canada’s Self-Care Framework and Cost Recovery fee program, many traditional medicines will be put out of reach.

Even now, many Indigenous Peoples already experience barriers to care, from long travel times to longer wait times and the presence of cultural disregard, something needs to change. For example, many Indigenous peoples reported experiencing unfair treatment, having their health concerns minimized or dismissed, and not being allowed to utilize cultural protocols such as smudging or traditional medicines.⁵ Instead of reducing these obstacles, Health Canada’s new regulations are creating even more.

In a country that prides itself on multiculturalism and reconciliation, why are policies advancing that threaten to erase traditional Indigenous healing? Health Canada should be making it easier, not harder, for Indigenous Peoples to access and share the medicines that reflect their values and culture.

If the Canadian government is truly committed to Indigenous Peoples, they will protect and promote access to traditional medicines, rather than restrict it.

Be A Voice For Indigenous Medicine

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References

1. Government of Canada. (2025). Statement by Prime Minister Carney on National Indigenous History Month. https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2025/06/01/statement-prime-minister-carney-national-indigenous-history-month
2. First Nations Health Authority (2025). Traditional wellness and healing. https://www.fnha.ca/what-we-do/health-system/traditional-wellness-and-healing
3. Government Of Canada (2024). Truth and reconciliation commission of Canada, Health. https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1524499024614/1557512659251
4. Statistics Canada (2024). Health care access and experiences among Indigenous people, 2024. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/241104/dq241104a-eng.htm
5.  Statistics Canada (2024). Health care access and experiences among Indigenous people, 2024. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/241104/dq241104a-eng.htm