In Canada, wait times are THE BIG ISSUE (say Canadians in national polls) and you'd think they could fix it... but guess what, they can't seem to, and there is a reason.
The consumption equation for universal access to *anything* requires the equation to be balanced by spending more or facing shortages.
Half of Canadians think their system needs to be fully rebuilt or have major overhauls.
And that's after 50 years of effort. Think about it.
I am Canadian. I, family, friends and all Canadians, have health care regardless of income, medical conditions or current employment status. Our health system is not perfect, as with any system it requires constant change and improvements so we collectively lobby our governments (not the corporate board rooms) for that. Our health care system has had better years than others but through it all, we did not fear denial of coverage. Constant improvements Yes. The US system instead NO!
No, you don't have health care. You have some care that is related to health. All procedures are not open to you. You get what you are allowed when you are allowed.
The new president of the CMA says your system is "imploding". The system you have is unsustainable. It is good for the first couple of generations but the decay is ever present and it has to fail. It is also changing Canadians, half of whom now think it is a good idea to dictate to doctors where they can work. Dictate?
@RyderSpearmann That is false. A recent poll suggests 84% of Canadians are happy with there healthcare system. Is its prefect, no. But its better than most systems
@josava1 Sorry, everything I said is fully accurate... regardless of what poll data show. And BTW, if you FORCE a healthcare system on everyone... then you damned better have it be 100% happy with it... not 84%.
By the way, the same percentage of Americans are happy with their healthcare... and we get far faster care, and better results from care.
And while American care has been constantly improving, Canadian care is on the decline.
@RyderSpearmann No your are not accurate. And you know that %100 is impossible so not sure why you would say something ridiculous like that. Glad to hear Obama care is improving things for you., maybe one day the American system will be as good as Canadas. And nothing was forced, people in Canada voted Tommy Douglas the greatest Canadian and Universal care was his idea. It has issues but wait times are down in many provinces and medical care is a right here. Something it shoulda been in the US
@josava1 Of course what I said was accurate. Since Obama care, quality has gone down (while prices have increased). And as our government is broke, EVERYONE that now DEPENDS on government for healthcare, is looking at drastic cuts. Like Canada, we will see anhuge exodus of doctors when they see how bad things are.
I challenge you to show any of my statistics are wrong.
@RyderSpearmann Challenge your "stats"? How about we start with your statements. Above you said "American care has been constantly improving" then next statement you said " quality has gone down " . What is it? I dont think you have any idea at all. There is no exodus of doctors in Canada either. If I just finished school would I want to go to Flin Flon, Manitoba or Vancouver? Some areas lack doctors because they are not attractive. Same thing in the US. San Diego or Oklahoma? Easy choice.
Canada 33,212,696 people over 3,511,003 sq mi where California has more people 36,756,666 over only 163,707 sq mi in Canada there are only in some areas 20 people for many miles doctors do not get enough or feel useful enough to stay so amount of docs is low.people now to travel to big city's miles away. when we have that many people just in California docs make more & feel more useful its sad how docs do not stay in Canada less big city's so less hospitals than our California
I live in Canada and I could cae less about wait times, because i know if its something i need right now im going to get it right now. If its elective like my esophegus(?)wrap that I had to controll heartburn, you might have to wait a year or so....waaaaaa!!! You mean that guy gets his emergency heart surgery before you can fix my heartburn??? But i have Wayy more money than him!!Whatt?? my money is no good here?How-how-socialist. Oh I can fly to the US and pay 15G for it,well i guess ill wait
So, Congress needs more time on health care so they can "do it right", but they're putting things on hold so that they can take a vacation?
Somehow, I don't think that the opponents of change will take a vacation from spreading half-truths and lies in their ads, and the diseases that uninsured people have won't take a vacation either.
I am so friggin sick of people who claim that since they or someone they knew had to wait for a proceedure.
Without insurance I have to wait forever. Same if I have insurance but the insurance company doesn't want to pay.
The argument is not whether Canada is a Utopia where nothing ever goes wrong. It's whether they have a better system then we do. And they very clearly do.
I've been waiting long enough. worked hard my whole life, had "good" insurance and still couldn't afford to take care of myself. Now I'm 34 years old, no insurance and I have teeth rotting out of my face. I could die from this. I don't want to die yet. The other day, I was bitten HARD on the hand by a feral cat... it's infected.. I hear the FIRST of several rabies shots is somewhere around $1000.00 just for the first shot... WTF am I going to do now? This blows!
This is more than just going to get my teeth cleaned... it's a serious medical problem that requires antibiotics from the doctor and then oral surgery. We could cover it in a public option here in the USA.
As for the rabies shots... NOTHING is free here. Still not sure if I have rabies for sure... I could find out 10 years from now when it's too late. My hand is infected pretty bad, but I was able to steel my girlfriends antibiotics she was taking for her sinus infection (she gladly gave them)
I am not talking about getting your teeth cleaned.
In canada oral surgery is done by your dentist (DDS or Doctor of Dental Surgery) and they can and do prescribe antibiotics.
AND it is not covered AT ALL in Canada. Consultation, surgery/treatment/meds.... As I said, you would be in exactly the same boat if you were here in Canada.
As for Rabies...it takes (at the longest) several months to kill you, so your 10 years comment is way off base. Try GOOGLE.
Also you are taking unprescribed drugs....this is gross negligence on your part. Dumb and not smart.
Just got off the phone with my MD sister in WI.
She tells me that ANYONE who shows up in the county hospital with even a chance of rabies would be treated promptly, and would be given the bill, and most never pay it and nothing ever happens about it. Look into it.
Oral surgery done in a hospital (and part of the costs done in a oral surgeons office)are covered in Canada, and depending on which province you reside in there is coverage for prescription medicine (not 100% but some).
I want full, public healthcare (including medical, dental, vision and behavioral) automatic in America just like a social security number. If you have a social security number, you have national health care. Simple as that. If you have a private plan and never use the national plan, it's up to you.
yeah, exactly, my mum back in the UK got BOTH hips replaced for FREE> I'll say that again - both hips replaced for free. Yes she waited a year but it wasnt life threatening, and now she has her legs back, she can walk without a cane, and better yet, she still has financial liquidity.
A year was a small price to pay. In the US it would have cost thousands, even if she had insurance it would have fulfilled the entire deductible for the year, $2-5 thousand usually depending on your plan.
i could see how if someone that didn't know no one in washington is suggesting that we adopt the system that canada has, they might get confused by this one vid. (i know lee knows), so i see this vid as more of showing how lame a scare tactic is. of course he could have shown it to be more lame by mentioning that no one in dc is holding canada up as our goal.
President Obama and Congress are both avoiding a Canadian-style single payer solution. :^( Instead, the President wants a "public option" for everyone who cannot currently obtain health insurance coverage. Americans who opt-in would pay a monthly premium for this public option, the same as they would with Blue Cross coverage.
American health insurance companies feel threatened by competition from this public option. So, they're running misleading attack ads that bash Canada's system.
ever try to get something special here? think you are going in soon? lol, try six to 8 weeks for lots of things, try 3-4 months to see a new specialist for your first appt. America already has wait times, republicans are doing anything they can to stall. They have no plan, just say no, just stall, just kill Obama's inertia and try to get some seats back, that is all they care about. they dont give a fuck about us, only power.
there are people imo who do not deserve health care, and those are the people who do not care of themselves, esp morbidly obese people. I feel if you are in shape you should be able to appy for health care, and people over the ga eof 60 should also be able to have it free, but everyone? na pointless. Single parents who work multiple jobs, yeah they deserve it, but a drug addict na.
Wait times are a HUGE issue here. I work in health care and our system is not what you want in the USA.
Try Norway or Sweden, but not what we have in Canada.
Our system sucks big time. Maybe it is better than no health care at all, but if you are looking to improve your system, why not "raise the bar" to a system that works well?
Canada's health care system is not one to be envied.
My sister is a GP in the Toronto area, and my sister in-law is a Surgeon in Wisconsin (and she has practiced in Washington too). I am intimately familiar with the health care system here in Canada and with the system in the USA. I never said the US system was perfect, to the contrary. I am working in Ontario for health care reform because our care is sub standard.
For every story of someone who got service right away there are any number of stories from the people who got bumped back on the waiting list BECAUSE someone else got pushed to the front of the line.
IE when your aunt had a MI and needed immediate surgery the person who was scheduled to have surgery done in that OR at that time that day got called and told 'don't bother to come in, you have been rescheduled for such-and-such a date'.....and the list just got longer for everyone
No, dmosier, I do not "get it." You may know Canadians who had to wait, but those Canadians still got treated.
Here in the States, insurance companies override doctors' decisions and refuse to pay for treatment. Then patients must wait until they can pay. I know one American who went deep into debt to save his mother's life, because her insurance company refused to pay.
Bash Canadian health care all you like. I wish I had coverage half as good as your Canadian coverage.
My Canadian father-in-law got treatment IMMEDIATELY after he was diagnosed with brain cancer.
My elderly Canadian aunt-in-law got a double bypass *immediately* after she had a heart attack.
My young Canadian brother-in-law had his leg set and in a cast right away after he broke it in an accident.
All got great and prompt health care, and none of my Canadian in-laws ever lost their savings or their house to medical costs. They didn't even have to fill out any paperwork.
i have a buddies in the states who tell me stories of uninsured friends of their getting into car accidents or get stabbed..... and the biggest thing they worry about is their medical bills, after a 3-5 day stay in the hospital....
that's fucked up right there!
our system could be much better.... but that's besides the point.... americans have nothing like it and suffer everyday because of it.
I have a link to actual bill in my comments section on my profile so that any of you who choose to do so can easily read it for yourselves without any bias and without anything being taken out of context. I also have several ways in which you can contact your representatives including phone numbers. We have been trying to do this for over 60 yrs. no more excuses. The longer we wait the worse things will be and the more it will cost.
Excellent Video!
Physicsnerd1 2 years ago
Lee, your position/statement is false.
In Canada, wait times are THE BIG ISSUE (say Canadians in national polls) and you'd think they could fix it... but guess what, they can't seem to, and there is a reason.
The consumption equation for universal access to *anything* requires the equation to be balanced by spending more or facing shortages.
Half of Canadians think their system needs to be fully rebuilt or have major overhauls.
And that's after 50 years of effort. Think about it.
RyderSpearmann 2 years ago
I am Canadian. I, family, friends and all Canadians, have health care regardless of income, medical conditions or current employment status. Our health system is not perfect, as with any system it requires constant change and improvements so we collectively lobby our governments (not the corporate board rooms) for that. Our health care system has had better years than others but through it all, we did not fear denial of coverage. Constant improvements Yes. The US system instead NO!
froggygrandma 2 years ago
No, you don't have health care. You have some care that is related to health. All procedures are not open to you. You get what you are allowed when you are allowed.
The new president of the CMA says your system is "imploding". The system you have is unsustainable. It is good for the first couple of generations but the decay is ever present and it has to fail. It is also changing Canadians, half of whom now think it is a good idea to dictate to doctors where they can work. Dictate?
RyderSpearmann 2 years ago
@RyderSpearmann That is false. A recent poll suggests 84% of Canadians are happy with there healthcare system. Is its prefect, no. But its better than most systems
josava1 1 year ago
@josava1 Sorry, everything I said is fully accurate... regardless of what poll data show. And BTW, if you FORCE a healthcare system on everyone... then you damned better have it be 100% happy with it... not 84%.
By the way, the same percentage of Americans are happy with their healthcare... and we get far faster care, and better results from care.
And while American care has been constantly improving, Canadian care is on the decline.
RyderSpearmann 1 year ago
@RyderSpearmann No your are not accurate. And you know that %100 is impossible so not sure why you would say something ridiculous like that. Glad to hear Obama care is improving things for you., maybe one day the American system will be as good as Canadas. And nothing was forced, people in Canada voted Tommy Douglas the greatest Canadian and Universal care was his idea. It has issues but wait times are down in many provinces and medical care is a right here. Something it shoulda been in the US
josava1 1 year ago
@josava1 Of course what I said was accurate. Since Obama care, quality has gone down (while prices have increased). And as our government is broke, EVERYONE that now DEPENDS on government for healthcare, is looking at drastic cuts. Like Canada, we will see anhuge exodus of doctors when they see how bad things are.
I challenge you to show any of my statistics are wrong.
RyderSpearmann 1 year ago
@RyderSpearmann Challenge your "stats"? How about we start with your statements. Above you said "American care has been constantly improving" then next statement you said " quality has gone down " . What is it? I dont think you have any idea at all. There is no exodus of doctors in Canada either. If I just finished school would I want to go to Flin Flon, Manitoba or Vancouver? Some areas lack doctors because they are not attractive. Same thing in the US. San Diego or Oklahoma? Easy choice.
josava1 1 year ago
Canada 33,212,696 people over 3,511,003 sq mi where California has more people 36,756,666 over only 163,707 sq mi in Canada there are only in some areas 20 people for many miles doctors do not get enough or feel useful enough to stay so amount of docs is low.people now to travel to big city's miles away. when we have that many people just in California docs make more & feel more useful its sad how docs do not stay in Canada less big city's so less hospitals than our California
repubtodem 2 years ago
I live in Canada and I could cae less about wait times, because i know if its something i need right now im going to get it right now. If its elective like my esophegus(?)wrap that I had to controll heartburn, you might have to wait a year or so....waaaaaa!!! You mean that guy gets his emergency heart surgery before you can fix my heartburn??? But i have Wayy more money than him!!Whatt?? my money is no good here?How-how-socialist. Oh I can fly to the US and pay 15G for it,well i guess ill wait
LGLF1 2 years ago 2
So, Congress needs more time on health care so they can "do it right", but they're putting things on hold so that they can take a vacation?
Somehow, I don't think that the opponents of change will take a vacation from spreading half-truths and lies in their ads, and the diseases that uninsured people have won't take a vacation either.
Nyctor118 2 years ago
FINALLY! Somebody addresses this.
I am so friggin sick of people who claim that since they or someone they knew had to wait for a proceedure.
Without insurance I have to wait forever. Same if I have insurance but the insurance company doesn't want to pay.
The argument is not whether Canada is a Utopia where nothing ever goes wrong. It's whether they have a better system then we do. And they very clearly do.
booley 2 years ago
Wow! Great Vid!
It's going to all my co-workers and Family. Thanks for this!
TPAUSA 2 years ago
I've been waiting long enough. worked hard my whole life, had "good" insurance and still couldn't afford to take care of myself. Now I'm 34 years old, no insurance and I have teeth rotting out of my face. I could die from this. I don't want to die yet. The other day, I was bitten HARD on the hand by a feral cat... it's infected.. I hear the FIRST of several rabies shots is somewhere around $1000.00 just for the first shot... WTF am I going to do now? This blows!
mraevirdomil 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
FYI mraevirdomil
Dental care is not covered in Canada.
We pay out of pocket 100% for dental, so you would be in EXACTLY the same position in Canada.
And for your rabies, can you not go to a 'county' hospital ER, wait for many hours and get your shot for free? Correct me if I am wrong....
dmosier 2 years ago
This is more than just going to get my teeth cleaned... it's a serious medical problem that requires antibiotics from the doctor and then oral surgery. We could cover it in a public option here in the USA.
As for the rabies shots... NOTHING is free here. Still not sure if I have rabies for sure... I could find out 10 years from now when it's too late. My hand is infected pretty bad, but I was able to steel my girlfriends antibiotics she was taking for her sinus infection (she gladly gave them)
mraevirdomil 2 years ago
I am not talking about getting your teeth cleaned.
In canada oral surgery is done by your dentist (DDS or Doctor of Dental Surgery) and they can and do prescribe antibiotics.
AND it is not covered AT ALL in Canada. Consultation, surgery/treatment/meds.... As I said, you would be in exactly the same boat if you were here in Canada.
dmosier 2 years ago
As for Rabies...it takes (at the longest) several months to kill you, so your 10 years comment is way off base. Try GOOGLE.
Also you are taking unprescribed drugs....this is gross negligence on your part. Dumb and not smart.
Just got off the phone with my MD sister in WI.
She tells me that ANYONE who shows up in the county hospital with even a chance of rabies would be treated promptly, and would be given the bill, and most never pay it and nothing ever happens about it. Look into it.
dmosier 2 years ago
Thanks for your help dmosier.... you're very helpful. Thanks again!
mraevirdomil 2 years ago
Obviously Canada is not the best Heath Care model to look at. Like I said, we could cover Dental Care here in the USA.
House Resolution (H.R.) 676
The United States National Health Insurance Act
SEC. 102.
(9) The full scope of dental services (other than cosmetic dentistry).
mraevirdomil 2 years ago
Oral surgery done in a hospital (and part of the costs done in a oral surgeons office)are covered in Canada, and depending on which province you reside in there is coverage for prescription medicine (not 100% but some).
froggygrandma 2 years ago
WRONG.
dmosier 2 years ago
My statement is true and still stands.
Why give me a thumbs down?
You don't like the truth?
dmosier 2 years ago
right fucking on
spider75berkeley 2 years ago
I want full, public healthcare (including medical, dental, vision and behavioral) automatic in America just like a social security number. If you have a social security number, you have national health care. Simple as that. If you have a private plan and never use the national plan, it's up to you.
cindyshealed 2 years ago 2
yeah, exactly, my mum back in the UK got BOTH hips replaced for FREE> I'll say that again - both hips replaced for free. Yes she waited a year but it wasnt life threatening, and now she has her legs back, she can walk without a cane, and better yet, she still has financial liquidity.
A year was a small price to pay. In the US it would have cost thousands, even if she had insurance it would have fulfilled the entire deductible for the year, $2-5 thousand usually depending on your plan.
madmac66 2 years ago
great vid lee, adding to my favorites.
and dmosier,
no one in washington is suggesting we adopt what canada has. seems to be a strawman argument.
sisforshayla 2 years ago
This video is suggesting it, is it not? That is the reason that I commented in the first place.
I would be very happy to hear that the USA was looking at a system other than this lame one in Canada.
Go for it.
dmosier 2 years ago
i could see how if someone that didn't know no one in washington is suggesting that we adopt the system that canada has, they might get confused by this one vid. (i know lee knows), so i see this vid as more of showing how lame a scare tactic is. of course he could have shown it to be more lame by mentioning that no one in dc is holding canada up as our goal.
sisforshayla 2 years ago
dmosier,
President Obama and Congress are both avoiding a Canadian-style single payer solution. :^( Instead, the President wants a "public option" for everyone who cannot currently obtain health insurance coverage. Americans who opt-in would pay a monthly premium for this public option, the same as they would with Blue Cross coverage.
American health insurance companies feel threatened by competition from this public option. So, they're running misleading attack ads that bash Canada's system.
JenHachigian 2 years ago
ever try to get something special here? think you are going in soon? lol, try six to 8 weeks for lots of things, try 3-4 months to see a new specialist for your first appt. America already has wait times, republicans are doing anything they can to stall. They have no plan, just say no, just stall, just kill Obama's inertia and try to get some seats back, that is all they care about. they dont give a fuck about us, only power.
Bubba186 2 years ago 2
good vid sir!
you gotta change your system one person at a time.
;d
666norton420 2 years ago
I really like the video, and I hope the health care reform passes soon.
WoWTirrus 2 years ago
there are people imo who do not deserve health care, and those are the people who do not care of themselves, esp morbidly obese people. I feel if you are in shape you should be able to appy for health care, and people over the ga eof 60 should also be able to have it free, but everyone? na pointless. Single parents who work multiple jobs, yeah they deserve it, but a drug addict na.
punched 2 years ago
Hey Lee:
I am in Canada, and a father of 2.
Wait times are a HUGE issue here. I work in health care and our system is not what you want in the USA.
Try Norway or Sweden, but not what we have in Canada.
Our system sucks big time. Maybe it is better than no health care at all, but if you are looking to improve your system, why not "raise the bar" to a system that works well?
Canada's health care system is not one to be envied.
Do your homework.
dmosier 2 years ago
while you argument makes sense if you're comparing it to the best or some hypothetical system, compared to the us, it's a fucking god send.
this: "Maybe it is better than no health care at all" shows how little you must know about the states.
people like you make me just as angry as those who say of system is perfect, don't change a thing.
not sure if those people exist, but you make about as much sense.
;d
666norton420 2 years ago
I work in the health care field here in Ontario.
My sister is a GP in the Toronto area, and my sister in-law is a Surgeon in Wisconsin (and she has practiced in Washington too). I am intimately familiar with the health care system here in Canada and with the system in the USA. I never said the US system was perfect, to the contrary. I am working in Ontario for health care reform because our care is sub standard.
What are your credentials, may I ask?
dmosier 2 years ago
"What are your credentials, may I ask? "
i'm a fucking canadian citizen who uses our heath care...didn't think i needed any other credentials.
i care less what you do/have done, when you speak as though us citizens aren't getting it up the asshole, you've lost credibility.
;d
666norton420 2 years ago
For every story of someone who got service right away there are any number of stories from the people who got bumped back on the waiting list BECAUSE someone else got pushed to the front of the line.
IE when your aunt had a MI and needed immediate surgery the person who was scheduled to have surgery done in that OR at that time that day got called and told 'don't bother to come in, you have been rescheduled for such-and-such a date'.....and the list just got longer for everyone
Get it?
dmosier 2 years ago
No, dmosier, I do not "get it." You may know Canadians who had to wait, but those Canadians still got treated.
Here in the States, insurance companies override doctors' decisions and refuse to pay for treatment. Then patients must wait until they can pay. I know one American who went deep into debt to save his mother's life, because her insurance company refused to pay.
Bash Canadian health care all you like. I wish I had coverage half as good as your Canadian coverage.
JenHachigian 2 years ago 2
"Get it?"
possibly... you think people that people who are in immediate need of services should wait for those who "were here first"?
that's rather american of you, is it not?
fight on against our crumbling health care, but recognize that it's over frosting on the cake, not the actual cake.
;d
666norton420 2 years ago
For what it's worth...
My Canadian father-in-law got treatment IMMEDIATELY after he was diagnosed with brain cancer.
My elderly Canadian aunt-in-law got a double bypass *immediately* after she had a heart attack.
My young Canadian brother-in-law had his leg set and in a cast right away after he broke it in an accident.
All got great and prompt health care, and none of my Canadian in-laws ever lost their savings or their house to medical costs. They didn't even have to fill out any paperwork.
JenHachigian 2 years ago
exactly jen!
i have a buddies in the states who tell me stories of uninsured friends of their getting into car accidents or get stabbed..... and the biggest thing they worry about is their medical bills, after a 3-5 day stay in the hospital....
that's fucked up right there!
our system could be much better.... but that's besides the point.... americans have nothing like it and suffer everyday because of it.
;d
666norton420 2 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I have a link to actual bill in my comments section on my profile so that any of you who choose to do so can easily read it for yourselves without any bias and without anything being taken out of context. I also have several ways in which you can contact your representatives including phone numbers. We have been trying to do this for over 60 yrs. no more excuses. The longer we wait the worse things will be and the more it will cost.
Smartassawhip 2 years ago 2
Glad that someone cares...
5*
trance4e 2 years ago