What nonsense.

“Ontario also has lower death rates for each of the top six causes: heart disease, cancer, stroke, emphysema and other chronic lower respiratory diseases, diabetes and accidents.”

http://www.ohio.com/news/american_dream/25659804.html?c=y

“I’ll take the Canadian system any day.” You’re welcome to it.

By the way, I have lived in Canada over 35 years and in the USA 12 years, so I know both systems first-hand.

Have you been treated for surgical/ terminal diseases in Canada?

Based on the California Association of Health Plans, the average waiting for surgery in Canada is 126 days. The Canadian system received 36 billion dollars from the Government in the last 10 years.

And this one is just one report, of the many around there that say exactly the same.

http://www.calhealthplans.org/documents/HCC04_SinglePayerHCSystem.pdf

My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in the U.S.A. in 2004. Only one week later she was undergoing surgery successfully. All covered by my insurance.

Do you think she could’ve waited 126 days for a mastectomy?

I have bookmarked them as well.

By the way, I have lived in Canada over 35 years and in the USA 12 years, so I know both systems first-hand.

I’ll take the Canadian system any day.

Oh…and regarding to this comment. You are absolutely right. The reason that once you nationalize the system is impossible to go back is, somehow a change of mentality in people and hypocrecy. The rich and upper middle class always will have the means to get private or better treatment. Interestingly, they are the ones that, at least in my country, push the most for the public system. It is a way to calm their guilt. They see it this way: “it’s better than the poor have some coverage than not have anything at all.” Now, wether that covers something more complicated or not, well they don’t know and they don’t care. They keep the poor reasonably happy this way (they are ignorant after all and they don’t know better and won’t google to know if somebody is rationing a treatment from them) and the rich and others don’t have to share more expenses, since they pay taxes to cover the poor.

Ugly, isn’t it?

I congratulate you for your clarity to express statistics and for being on top of what really public option might be for the US.

Americans don’t have a clue in what they are getting into. They think (and they ask) for a public option that also includes QUALITY. Where did they get that from? Quality and public option don’t go hand in hand. In order to cover the costs, you have to cut somewhere. Where to cut? You cut in those expensive treatments, such as cancer, implants and others.

I grew up with public health care in my country of origin. Yes, you have vaccinations free. Yes, you can see a doctor and not paying anything. Yes, you can get an X-Ray for 5 bucks. But, to see a doctor for any specific condition you will have to wait months; good luck if your doctor can read the X-ray you got for 5 bucks (X-rays machines sometimes are 10, 15 years old, when they are not broken) and forget about advance treatments. They simply don’t cover. There is no money for everything.

So, it really saddens me when I read that most Americans think they will get quality public healthcare as if they were paying for a private one. I don’t understand how they don’t realize it’s impossible to get, unless you tax the hell out of people.

Regards and keep up the good work.

This would be what we hope to achieve?

Let’s compare statistics then, rather than trying to compare one disease.

Basic Statistics
U.S. Canada
Life Expectancy (Male) 74.8 77.4
Life Expectancy (Female) 80.1 82.4
Infant Mortality/1000 live births 6.8 5.3
Obesity Rate (Male) 31.1 17.0
Obesity Rate (Female) 32.2 19.0
HC spending as % of GDP (2005) 16.0% 10.4%

I believe your health care costs have also skyrocketed in the last decade so that number is probably greater.

I believe that there would also be less bankruptcy due to health issues in Canada vs US