1. The reason Canadians are happy with their health care is because they're used to the system. If the citizens of the U.S.A. were to participate in such a system there would be a great hue and cry for at least several years but eventually they would get used to it.
2. There was a time when I had a medical condition requiring an expensive medication. At Sam's Club, a months worth was over $400. I got over a 3 month's supply from a Canadian pharmacy for less than $150.
Citizens of the U.S.A. aren't supposed to import medication because allegedly there are quality control issues. I say horse feces. Drug companies take public money for various research and then charge ripoff prices. If the U.S.A. was serious about reducing medical costs they could start by cutting drug companies down to size.
Don't even get me started on the medications marketed that aren't any better than much cheaper ones that are off patent and the "drug shortages" of cheaper medications.
3. It's a myth that the poor can't get health care in the U.S.A. The ones that get ripped off are the ones that have too much income to qualify for Medicaide or other public assistance but not prosperous enough to afford insurance.
For an example, say you have insurance and need a CAT scan. The hospital bills $1,500 but the patient has insurance and an agreement with the insurance company so all that is paid is $500 (this is just a hypothetical example). If the patient has no insurance, they're billed $1,500 and are espected to pay the whole thing. Essentially, the low middle class is subsidizing the health care of the indigent.
4. Then there is malpractice litigation. If there is delay in diagnosis, delay in treatment or just an out of sorts unhappy patient the phsician in the U.S.A. can get sued and the patient may win an exhorbitant sum. It's unlikely a physician will ever be sued for ordering too many tests but if some test for an obscure condition wasn't done and there is a bad outcome, a lawsuit is likely.
As an example, say a person comes in after having bumped their head. They didn't lose consciousness, have no bruising or swelling and have no neurologic deficits. Their chance of having a serious injury is exceedingly small. If though, in the very unlikely event that they died several days later of a brain bleed and didn't have a CT scan, the treating physician will probably get sued.
Tell me, given the choice of writing the order for a CT scan for hundreds of patients who may not need one or potentially going through hours of depositions and waiting for years for a resolution of a lawsuit, do you or do you not think the physician will order the CT scan?
There is the "liberty and justice for all" thing but in our courts, who wins can very well depend on who puts on the best show. In addition, plaintif's attornies want no one on the jury who actually has medical expertise.
5. When those who voted for Obama get a real taste of what he has done to health care, they may wish they hadn't done so. The young and health are going to pay much more for insurance than they had dreamed or they will be fined (a.k.a., taxed) for not having insurance. More companies won't hire full time employees because of the insurance costs in doing so. The elderly, even those to are still very functional, will find out that the health care system won't pay for some services needed to keep them alive.
Be aware, it's really a benefit to the government if the lame and the halt, i.e., those require increased services, die as long as the government doesn't get blamed for it.
