2/27/2006

So what is the problem with socialized medicine?

The last sentence quoted below says it all.

Accepting money from patients for operations they would otherwise receive free of charge in a public hospital is technically prohibited in this country, even in cases where patients would wait months or even years in discomfort before receiving treatment.

But no one is about to arrest Dr. Brian Day, who is president and medical director of the center, or any of the 120 doctors who work there. Public hospitals are sending him growing numbers of patients they are too busy to treat, and his center is advertising that patients do not have to wait to replace their aching knees.

The country's publicly financed health insurance system — frequently described as the third rail of its political system and a core value of its national identity — is gradually breaking down. Private clinics are opening around the country by an estimated one a week, and private insurance companies are about to find a gold mine.

Dr. Day, for instance, is planning to open more private hospitals, first in Toronto and Ottawa, then in Montreal, Calgary and Edmonton. Ontario provincial officials are already threatening stiff fines. Dr. Day says he is eager to see them in court.

"We've taken the position that the law is illegal," Dr. Day, 59, says. "This is a country in which dogs can get a hip replacement in under a week and in which humans can wait two to three years." . . .

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am a refugee from the Canadian health care system. I had a cancer that went undiagnosed for over a year. They thought I had back problems, so I waited seven months to see a back specialist who didn't even ask me about my symptoms. He just looked and eight month old information and told me "sitting is not your friend".

Fortunately, USCIS issued my visa in time. I was able to get a job, get coverage and get diagnosed. I'm not rid of the cancer yet, and there's been a lot of nerve damage, but I should survive.

Had I stayed in Canada, I'd be dead now. Medicare is the new democide.

2/27/2006 7:46 AM  
Blogger John Lott said...

Outrageous. I am sorry that you went through that.

2/27/2006 12:21 PM  

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