Not really. I think we're seeing a trend here -- people in Canada love their healthcare system.
Hello Bob,
I'm a 33 year old Canadian who has lived in Vancouver most of my lifeand can attest to widespread support for public healthcare in Canada.I must agree with previous Canadians who have emailed you, including"Norm" who points out that the "horror stories" are largelymanufactured and forwarded by American lobbyists against Americanhealth reform, and Canadian lobbyists who would like to see furtherprivatization of Canadian healthcare. The Ontario government ispresently countering the claims of Shona Holmes, the woman featured inUS ads decrying health care in Canada. It appears that her conditionis not as life-threatening as portrayed. While a brain cyst certainly must be distressing and I don't wish to diminish her suffering, it does appear that her plight has been misrepresented.
I have never heard of anyone personally, or even heard of "someone who knows someone" who suffered disastrously from lack of care. It is true that there are waiting lists for MRIs, to see certain types of specialists, and for procedures such as joint replacements. People can suffer from pain while waiting for, say, a knee or hip transplant. Anysuch cases are sad. However I am quite certain that even Americans with health insurance or HMOs do have to wait for treatment. If one has $100,000 in cash I'm sure you can get next day surgery, but I don't believe this is a sound basis for a public health system.
(Yes -- we do have to wait for treatment here. I once waited a month for an MRI, for example.)
A seldom-raised point about universal healthcare regards the simplefreedom that it affords to an individual such as myself. I had thechance to work on a part-time and freelance basis, to go to school fora graduate degree, and to take some time off from work. I would nothave been able to do any of these things had I been tied to a job indesperate hopes of keeping my health coverage. At no point did I everworry about becoming ill, or coming down with a "pre-existing"condition that would make me ineligible for basic health care in thefuture.Fine print about how the system works in my province: We do havesupplemental health plans for dental/vision care/prescriptions throughemployers and which you can buy for yourself. These private insurersmay discriminate against pre-existing conditions for, say,supplemental prescription drug coverage, but essential things such asmedicine are still covered by the government plan in any case, basedon your income. We have something called "Fair Pharmacare" to ensurethat no families are disproportionally burdened by prescription costsbased on income. The approximate cost of an individual supplementalplan is about $800 per year, and the government premiums in myprovince are about $700 per year, which you only pay if you make morethan $28,000 per year. There is a sliding scale of payments between$20,000-28,000, and under $20,000 you pay nothing at all. So as astudent I had no premiums at all, and a subsidized supplemental healthplan through my university. So for an "average" person earning about$35,000 per year, their healthcare cost might be something around$1500 per year, plus a bit extra for some prescriptions, etc. Thereare absolutely no deductions, fees, or co-pay for visiting a doctor,hospital, medically necessary tests, etc. Last year I required a minorsurgical test which was scheduled within two months at an excellentlocal hospital where I received good care, got my results a week laterand was fully taken care of post-surgery to monitor my condition. Ican't imagine how much it would have cost me in terms of dollars butalso aggravation, even if I had insurance, in a private insurancesystem.Best wishes, and I really enjoy your pieces on HuffPost. Always readthem when I see your name.Michele.