Quote:
The waiting lists are for non-time critical cases and anybody who needs one urgently will get seen as soon as possible.
Not in Ontario. The brain tumor example I cited is real-world and just happened to the husband of an associate of my fiancee. His doctors discovered something thhat was so urgent they told him to come in the very day they called him. Everything they told him exuded urgency. Yet that much needed scan needed to be scheduled and he had to wait at least 2 weeks.
Hospitals and other facilities with scanners sell time on those machines. I'm sure those sold time blocks impact private citizens who must book around this. I'm also sure that if enough pressure and effort were expended one could either find another scanner at another facility or squeeze in sooner.
I would never argue a long-line argument to defend the current US situation. I'm just stating that Canada has problems of its own, even with socially funded healthcare. There's also an extreme shortage of doctors in Southern Ontario. Even this city in which I currently live (Vaughan), with one of the highest tax rates in the area and a booming population over the past 10 years, lacks its own hospital.
A number of healthcare related benefits have also been cut back over the years (provincially), including any form of eye-care. We used to be able to get an eye exam at any time. Then it went down to one every 2 years. Now you have to pay for all exams (there's an exclusion for seniors and young children I believe). What's worse is that many employee health plans have not stepped up to fill in the coverage.
I don't know how the health plans in other countries compare, but when looking to Canada, make sure to correct for the problems currently plaguing us.
It's practically a no-brainer that social healthcare would work in the US if it can work anywhere else. The US spends untold sums on so much else like defense (or rather "offense") as well as lining the pockets of so many representatives.
Previous Topic
Index
