Health Care compared to the US, a discussion for Canadians only.

[PhotobearSam]

I have been on the community board and there are a lot of threads about Nationalized Health Care and how bad it would be. A lot of people seem to think that we live in the dark ages here and wait MONTHS for EVERYTHING.

I don't get it.

Sure our system has flaws. If you need knee surgery, you wait. You need treatment for a heart attack, you don't wait.

In the last year, My Mom had colon cancer diagnosed, had her surgery, and is now cancer free (knock on wood), Dad had a triple Bypass, DH had a knee replaced and stomach surgery, and I had my gallbladder removed.

At no time during all of this, did I have to stay up nights wondering if we could afford the hospital bills, nor did I fight insurance companies to allow these procedures and I met plenty of poor people in the hospital that were there right next to my very well off parents.

How is this a bad thing?

They say we pay more in taxes? Do we? I met so many people in the US when I was there for a month who said how they had to have a part time job as well as a full time one just to pay there insurance. I don't know a lot of people here with more than one job unless they are super hyper and really want to make a lot of cash. (I know that some people here still have to have 2 or 3 jobs to make ends meet. I was just saying it was a lot more down in Florida)

If they all paid that money they give to insurance companies into taxes instead, would it not be more equitable? Do poor people ever get knee replacements if they don't have insurance?

Here, if you are sick, you go to the hospital or doctor, there, they seem to try to decide if it's worth it before they go. They put off going because it will cost too much, is an HMO doctor available? Will they need to co-pay?



Now, DH needs a new knee again (the first surgery had complications and they were not his or the surgeons fault) but his surgeon is now in the US making more money...So off to find a new surgeon, we just saw one this week. Total wait, 1 1/2 months. Not bad.

We met a couple at WDW who asked DH how much his knee surgery cost. They would not believe us when we said We don't know. They kept at us. We had to explain that we never see a bill, we don't have to fill out insurance forms and we leave the hospital only worrying about when we can go back to work...He was floored. They asked us questions on our health care for 30 minutes.

If we just paid our doctors more, we maybe could keep them but that is another story.

I had a plan to stop that for a while. Each person in medical school should be eligible for a grant each year that they don't have to pay back but in exchange for that grant, they have to pledge to stay in Canada for one year...The longer they pledge, the more $ they could get...maybe I am naive...but that was just a thought.

Now, I am not saying that our health care is perfect, I am not saying we don't pay a lot in taxes for it...but to me, it's all worth it.

I would do anything to keep our health care...I hope it is here forever and just improves. We as Canadians believe that EVERYONE deserve health care, and I am proud of that.

I hope this does not start a huge debate but I needed to say these things.

Also, I want to thank publicly all the Doctors, nurses, anaesthesiologists, x-ray techs, food service and cleaning crews that make it all possible at all our hospitals. I am grateful that you are there, working so hard. I have both my parents now because of you all...I owe my parents lives to the doctors who saved them and I thank them for their hard work.

God Bless the Healers in our midst...

 

[maryliz]

Well said, Samantha. We have friends who now work in the US, and their DD was born there. We were visiting recently and I was telling my kids to be careful on the playground at the local zoo. My friend pipes up and says "yes, NO trips to Emerg". Their DD had fallen last year, cut her chin, and 4 stitches cost them over $1000. Because of their deductible, yearly max, and stuff that I don't understand about their health insurance, it was more lucrative for them to pay OOP for the stitches.

Now ... put it in reverse a few years, their DD is only 2 months old, and they are here in ONtario for Christmas (they own a house here too), and DD is very, very sick. They are concerned because she is so little, so take her to our local emerg, knowing they will have to pay for it ... total cost of hospital visit ... $120.

I ditto the sentiments of "thanks to everyone who works in the industry".

That being said, my Dr. is retiring in April, so we now have the long process of trying to find a replacement. If anyone in London knows of a Dr. that is taking new patients, please PM me with the info.

 

[Kurby]

when you compare Canada to the US you can't put things in a bubble.

you have to compare apples to apples

what are the average salaries for the same job, cost or transportation (gas, public etc) remove the benefits from any company because not all Canadian's or Americans receive benefits from their company. what out of pocket expense's do they have. just basic expense's, year check ups with your dr, flu shots, sick and need to see them other then once a year, break a leg, arm, finger, having a baby, hip replacements, knee replacements - you'd have to figure out the cost here too.

things have been removed from our medical care like eye exams.

then try if you can to figure out just how much of your taxes goes to our health care system (not all of it goes) then divide by how many people in our country.

you'll find that while we pay for people who don't pay taxes it's far better to have it removed from the source then have to save thousands or put it on cc's.

no system is perfect - everyone knows how to fix it

but when all is said and done i'd much rather have 20 or 30 bucks taken off every other week and know that my basic -med medical is covered.

if i want something extra like gastric bypass, lasik eye, having my drugs covered, dental, fertility help, experimental treatments or anything else then of course i'll have to pay for it - but that's my choice.

i can slept fine knowing that while my MIL was in the hospital for 3 months having her large intestine removed that we wouldn't have been hit with a 100,000 dollar bill to be divided by her children and although her medical supplies aren't covered at least her surgery and hospital stay was.

and as far as having a baby is concerned i dont know how on earth anyone can afford more then one in the States.

My midwife, hospital visit and hospital delivery plus all the post checkups and Cassie's shots were all covered (the only thing we paid for was the ambulance) it's over 15,000 in the US.

and yes we sometimes have to wait for care/service but i guess that's the price we pay when a lot of our nurses and dr's leave to make more money in the states. guess everyone has a price tag and those who are offered 10, 20k more in the States they find it hard not to leave. Those who stay provide us with wonderful care and compassion (ok not all but most nurses and dr's)

when our dr retired she gave us a list of other dr's she knew and who were accepting patients. we moved over in less then a month.

 

[dancin Disney style]

I agree that our system has flaws.....but at least we have it. We have all heard stories about what things cost in the US and about people being denied insurance or treatment. Yes, we have to wait a little for tests or treatment but we always get them and we don't die from treatable illnesses because we can't pay.

Could it ever be perfect and please everyone......NO! not likely but it's far better than the alternative.