The Health Insurance Card: Important Dates
1970
The Health Insurance Card is here! White with blue inscriptions, the card is valid for an unlimited period of time. The Health Insurance Number is based on the social insurance number of the head of the family, usually the father.
1976
The card takes on the appearance familiar to us today. It is valid for four years, and a unique permanent number is allocated to each person.
1992
The photo and signature of the holder appear on the card. A hologram is added to thwart forgeries. The holder can now check a box on the back of the card to consent to organ donation.
1995
The Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec and the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec coordinate their operations so that the same photo and signature appear on both the Health Insurance Card and the driver's licence.
1998
The card holder can now consent to organ donation by signing a sticker and affixing it to the back of the card.
2003
Micro printing is embedded in the card.
2005
The size of the photo appearing on the card is increased by nearly 40% to facilitate identification of the holder. A protective layer is added for increased durability.
2010
The Card now has a bar code.
Where did the sun come from?
The sunset seen on the Health Insurance Card was photographed at Pourvoirie du lac Faillon, in the Abitibi, on July 24, 1974.
Robert Larivière, a client of the outfitting operation, took the picture. Thanks to his brother, Louis F. Larivière, the photo wound up on the drafting tables of Cossette Communication-Marketing, the advertising agency working with RAMQ at the time. That is how the Health Insurance Card came to be commonly referred to as the "carte soleil."
