Words You Won't Hear in Canadian Health Care

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Big Sigh - that is definitely something I miss about Canada - health care! The US system sucks - long waits, expensive copays, lots of errors, lots of phone calls needed to insurance companies and doctors sorting out their errors, insurance companies trying to dictate what type of medicine I am allowed to have, deferring or turning down treatment because the deductibles haven't been met and it's expensive, trying to find a doctor who is 'in network', in Canada emergencies are treated like emergencies and I don't have to prove I can pay for the emergency care first, then wait and wait and wait . . . I can't believe that so many Americans think the system here is good! They really have no idea.

I actually am one of the people who think the system is pretty darn good!

True I have never had cancer or some extensive med. condition but, I walk in see the doctor and leave (after paying 10 bucks).

It's always been this way. I nor my kids have ever had a hassle bigger than calling to see why a bill was not sent to the insurance company.

I don't understand this big hassle you are experiencing and I have had a number of dif plans over the years.

I know getting Healthcare "IS" a problem for a minority of middle class folks (the poor have it as do the rich)

we need to work on that..not set this wrecking ball in place

Tell you what seems alarming as hell to me: the idea that soon everyone will BE REQUIRED to have coverage.

IF you don't or can't (or choose not to) pay your part, the force of the Government will extract it from you one way or another...... think the IRS is bad now? wait till you don't get that sweet hand-out at the end of the year, so many have become used to. (Earned income credit IS a handout)

The other part that is the most worrisome to me is this "we are all in it together" mood that will take over will burst open the door to even more "Nanny state" regulations. Weight reductions, smoking, risky hobbies, excessive alcohol consumption... the list goes on.

And logically it's true why should the overweight person pay the same amount as the fit person?

THIS IS THE DANGER OF LETTING GOVERNMENT HAVE A MONOPOLY which is exactly where it will head.

Their is a reason they will not try a pilot program in say one city or area, to see how it works.

There is a truism The more the Government breaks something, the more they need to fix it.

Danno, Danno, Danno... Only a serious moron feel's the US healthcare system is 'pretty damn good' and your statement indicates that either your are parroting your talking head masters at FOX or your yourself are making a fortune as a private insurance middle man.

Our doctors are good, when you are in the group that can afford them, but increasing numbers of Americans are not in that group. We are not number one in health care, we rank around 36th or 37th down in the pack with countries like Botswana and Lithuania. [The rank is correct, and we are bracketed by Third World countries.] Our health care system is a mess, getting worse in terms of cost and services provided, and the fact that so many believe everything is great is one of the greatest political jokes ever played out on a people.

Agreed - I think its also rather silly for him to say "I think the system is pretty darned good", yet at the same time "I have never had cancer or some extensive med. condition". What is the basis for acclaiming a system that he has minimal experience of besides the odd trip to the GPs office?

I wonder if his opinion will change if he does develop a serious or chronic condition (as we're all likely to do at some point in time).

Look Pike, I am just being honest with my years of experience.

Are you suggesting everyone who has not been on deaths-doorstep keep out of this?

Seems to me we have three groups of people on this issue.

1.Those that think all healthcare is the responsibility of the GOV. to provide for them.(free or damn near it)

2. Those that think it's a free country (your on your own)

3. Those who want to get coverage for everyone to protect them from accidents or illnesses which are beyond payment.

I guess I fall in the third group, it's actually a little pathetic to hear people brag that they paid nothing for their own medical care. Like somehow everyone else has the primary responsibility to pay for your kids physicals and your ingrown toenail. Hell, even in a commune everyone contributes.

I'm suggesting that unless you've been in the position of needing care for something more substantial than an ingrown toenail - you have no idea what the healthcare system is like, and how it treats the people who need it most.

Also as has been pointined out innumerable times - there is no such thing as "free" healthcare. Free at the point of use doesn't mean that people aren't paying for it - in the UK that's what "National Insurance" is for.

The only thing that's disgusting is the amount of rhetorical nonsense being bandied about.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

it's actually a little pathetic to hear people brag that they paid nothing for their own medical care.

it's more than a little pathetic. it's downright disgusting.

it's like listening to someone talk about how they stole their neighbor's car and used it to drive around for a few years.

it's what you get when you allow people to sluff responsibility for their own condition off onto other people's backs.

Yeah - you really don't know what you're talking about Mr Shooter, do you.

Its just the usual round of rhetorical conservative talking points, without any actual knowledge of the subject at hand.

[HAL 9000 96]

it's actually a little pathetic to hear people brag that they paid nothing for their own medical care.

it's more than a little pathetic. it's downright disgusting.

it's like listening to someone talk about how they stole their neighbor's car and used it to drive around for a few years.

it's what you get when you allow people to sluff responsibility for their own condition off onto other people's backs.

I really dislike this comment.

In regards to the percentage of unemployed, Canada and the US are probably neck and neck right now. Considering every one in Canada is pretty much paying the same for their insurance, I don't see how someone would be taking the other for a ride and breaking their back over someone who is not employed.

You don't have to agree with it, but saying it's disgusting is a whole other issue. You have never experienced social healthcare. You don't know what it's like to be in the system.

Yeah. My husband got Cobra'd for a year. It was costing his father $600.00/month. I don't think that's really affordable if you aren't pretty well off which most of the country is not.

Regarding costs and all... how much does Canada's medical insurance system costs Canadians per month or is it funded by other public means? Because there still are retards that think its free.

To be perfectly honest with you, I don't know. But it sure as hell ain't expensive.

Go figure.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Big Sigh - that is definitely something I miss about Canada - health care! The US system sucks - long waits, expensive copays, lots of errors, lots of phone calls needed to insurance companies and doctors sorting out their errors, insurance companies trying to dictate what type of medicine I am allowed to have, deferring or turning down treatment because the deductibles haven't been met and it's expensive, trying to find a doctor who is 'in network', in Canada emergencies are treated like emergencies and I don't have to prove I can pay for the emergency care first, then wait and wait and wait . . . I can't believe that so many Americans think the system here is good! They really have no idea.

One more phrase you won't hear in the Canadian Health Care System "Yes, yes we do have an available appointment this week". Unless it's something urgent, you're going to have to wait longer than you would in the states. I'm basing that on someone actually having health insurance. Of course someone uninsured will have to wait forever and pay through the nose. I have really good benefits through my employer, but i'm still in favor of a public health system.

I disagree with that. I was always able to phone my doctor and get an appointment that day. For my endocrinologist I was able to get appointment in a day or two. Emergencies at the hospital I was seen right away as was my brother - in fact he was in the operating room within 30 minutes of admission for a ruptured bowel. He would probably have died here in the US waiting in the Emergency room. A few years ago I went to the emergency room here in the US with all of the symptoms of a stroke - I didn't get to see a doctor for over 6 hours! When I did see one, I was immediately admitted and given a CT scan and scheduled for an MRI and a neurologist visit for a probable stroke - 6 hours when strokes are supposed to be treated immediately to prevent permanent damage. It takes me 4 months in advance to schedule my annual physical with my doctor and if I want to see him that day there are no appointments - I have to go and wait at the walk in clinic and they will see me after they finish with the appointments - usually a 4 to 5 hour wait. It took me over 3 months to get an appointment with my endocrinologist - I do have a chronic condition. I received far better and more timely health care in Canada than I do here in the US. My prescriptions were covered 100% under my employer's supplemental health insurance - here with health insurance we still end up paying over several hundred dollar a month in co-pays and the insurance company wants to limit the amount of medication I am allowed in spite of it being prescribed. There is no generic for what I need but because I don't use their 'favourite brand' I am penalized by having to pay more for the compound that does work - their 'favourite' brand doesn't.

Edited July 22, 2009 by Kathryn41

[HAL 9000 96]

Big Sigh - that is definitely something I miss about Canada - health care! The US system sucks - long waits, expensive copays, lots of errors, lots of phone calls needed to insurance companies and doctors sorting out their errors, insurance companies trying to dictate what type of medicine I am allowed to have, deferring or turning down treatment because the deductibles haven't been met and it's expensive, trying to find a doctor who is 'in network', in Canada emergencies are treated like emergencies and I don't have to prove I can pay for the emergency care first, then wait and wait and wait . . . I can't believe that so many Americans think the system here is good! They really have no idea.

One more phrase you won't hear in the Canadian Health Care System "Yes, yes we do have an available appointment this week". Unless it's something urgent, you're going to have to wait longer than you would in the states. I'm basing that on someone actually having health insurance. Of course someone uninsured will have to wait forever and pay through the nose. I have really good benefits through my employer, but i'm still in favor of a public health system.

I disagree with that. I was always able to phone my doctor and get an appointment that day. For my endocrinologist I was able to get appointment in a day or two. Emergencies at the hospital I was seen right away as was my brother - in fact he was in the operating room within 30 minutes of admission for a ruptured bowel. He would probably have died here in the US waiting in the Emergency room. A few years ago I went to the emergency room here in the US with all of the symptoms of a stroke - I didn't get to see a doctor for over 6 hours! When I did see one, I was immediately admitted and given a CT scan and scheduled for an MRI and a neurologist visit for a probable stroke - 6 hours when strokes are supposed to be treated immediately to prevent permanent damage. It takes me 4 months in advance to schedule my annual physical with my doctor and if I want to see him that day there are no appointments - I have to go and wait at the walk in clinic and they will see me after they finish with the appointments - usually a 4 to 5 hour wait. It took me over 3 months to get an appointment with my endocrinologist - I do have a chronic condition. I received far better and more timely health care in Canada than I do here in the US. My prescriptions were covered 100% under my employer's supplemental health insurance - here with health insurance we still end up paying over several hundred dollar a month in co-pays and the insurance company wants to limit the amount of medication I am allowed in spite of it being prescribed. There is no generic for what I need but because I don't use their 'favourite brand' I am penalized by having to pay more for the compound that does work - their 'favourite' brand doesn't.

Hmmmm.

McGill for postdoc is going to be on my list.

[justashooter 430]

it's actually a little pathetic to hear people brag that they paid nothing for their own medical care.

it's more than a little pathetic. it's downright disgusting.

it's like listening to someone talk about how they stole their neighbor's car and used it to drive around for a few years.

it's what you get when you allow people to sluff responsibility for their own condition off onto other people's backs.

I really dislike this comment.

In regards to the percentage of unemployed, Canada and the US are probably neck and neck right now. Considering every one in Canada is pretty much paying the same for their insurance, I don't see how someone would be taking the other for a ride and breaking their back over someone who is not employed.

You don't have to agree with it, but saying it's disgusting is a whole other issue. You have never experienced social healthcare. You don't know what it's like to be in the system.

you are free to like or dislike anything i say. you're in America, now.

if you really think that everyone in canada is paying the same amount of money for health care, you need to take another course in economics. state funded health care spends money that has to be generated somehow. businesses and people are taxed to pay for it. business owners lose profit through this taxation. stock-holders lose profit through this taxation. high wage earners lose income through this taxation. unemployed people and people with low salaries don't.

is this "fair"? no way in hell. to put it simply, successful people are punished so that unsuccessful people can be rewarded. right now you may be young and at a point of low earnings/wealth, but as you get older and accumulate more wealth your perspective will change. i have faith in you. you will be successful, and if you are taxed heavily for someone else's benefit, you will resent it.

my grandmother used to say, "anytime someone gets something they didn't earn, somebody earned something they didn't get."

[Emancipation 2]

I really think it's funny that Americans like to bash the CDN system when very few actually have any experience with it. Sure there are wait times, but from my experience here in the US it's similar timelines to see a Dr. I could always call my Dr. in Canada when I was really ill and get an appointment that same week. Plus there were always night clinics that were available if you needed to see Dr's right away (without having to go to the emergency room).

JUST like the US system is not good for the extreme cases the CDN system has and will fail people.. no system is perfect. I personally don't think that most Americans would put up with the level of taxation required to put a full on health care program in place. I say most because in CT I pay more in taxes off my pay check than I did back home. People in the North East seem to not mind paying a whole lot of taxes for not many services. Of course there are taxes on purchases (in my home province it was 15% on purchases), but as far as taxes on my income I pay more here in CT than I did back home in Canada.

The major beef I have with the US system is the price of medications. Take birth control for example. Back home in Canada I paid like $1.50/ mo for a prescription with Blue Cross (and yes that is the CO-Pay.. we just don't call it that in canada but it does exist if you have private supplemental insurance). In the US I pay about $8.00 for the EXACT same drug. the last time I went to my physician she prescribed a birth control med that had no generic that cost $28.00 a month (co-pay), again, I probably would have only paid $10.00 for the same med on insurance in Canada. Meds here in the US are SUPER high.. competition does not mean things are cheaper. The US system has proved that.

[thetreble 19]

Hal, I haven't read every post so I'm not sure on your stance on this.

McGill is a great school though!

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Hmmmm.

McGill for postdoc is going to be on my list.

Uuuuh... loveliest campus ever brother

[justashooter 430]

it's actually a little pathetic to hear people brag that they paid nothing for their own medical care.

it's more than a little pathetic. it's downright disgusting.

it's like listening to someone talk about how they stole their neighbor's car and used it to drive around for a few years.

it's what you get when you allow people to sluff responsibility for their own condition off onto other people's backs.

Yeah - you really don't know what you're talking about Mr Shooter, do you.

Its just the usual round of rhetorical conservative talking points, without any actual knowledge of the subject at hand.

you really don't like it when someone calls a spade a spade, and you're the spade, do you?

[J&K 0]

You know it's sad when your husband has to go to the hospital for an emergency CT scan for possible appendicitis and when the outpatient registration person asks you can you pay your co-pay today? Me thinking it was going to be $50 and they come out and say "that will be $150 please or 10% of what this is going to cost" and your husband, who is in obvious pain looks at you and starts to cry because you know that it means that things just got a little tighter.

He was seriously thinking of NOT having it done because of how much it was going to cost us.

Thankfully it turned out to not be appendicitis, but now we will be at least $600 owing to the hospital(deductible).

This was last night folks.

My husband will be the first to tell you that he didn't believe in the Canadian healthcare system....after last night, he says to me "let's move to Canada" where he would have been taken to the ER and had the same procedure done in probably the same amount of time (we waited around 4 hours to have the test).

My mom, who still lives in Canada has COPD. Is on oxygen, 15 different medications, owns a scooter and an Airsep machine. She was lucky enough to have worked for the Ontario gov't and had supplemental insurance as well as short and long term disability.

She receives a disability cheque every month, and hasn't had to pay 1cent for any of the things she needs to survive. In fact, despite the fact that her lungs are in such terrible shape, she is able to travel and enjoy what life she has left....she's 55.

She's been in the hospital countless times for infection and pneumonia, in a semi-private room (thanks to the insurance).

Now, she's in a program to possibly have a lung transplant through Toronto General Hospital. All paid for by OHIP or her other insurance. She happened to be watching Good Morning America or Today (something of the like) and they were interviewing a man, who had COPD and needed a lung transplant...but couldn't get it done because it was going to cost $80,000-100,000 dollars. He was trying to raise the money so he could live.

That is disgusting.

I hate the fact that when you think of US Healthcare, the first thing that comes to my mind is money. How much is this going to cost me. My husband would rather have risked his life to save us a few dollars!

No wonder other countries are outliving those in the US...they can't afford to live.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

I am one of the fortunate ones who has fantastic healthcare coverage and could never be wiped out by any catastrophic events mentioned previously. My out of pocket maximum is only $3000.

That is until a catastrophic event costs you your job and - with it - your coverage.

Under COBRA, if you are terminated for any reason other than "gross misconduct," you are

guaranteed the right to continue your former employer's group plan for up to 18 months.

Yes, you are. I am aware of COBRA. The typical employer pays somewhere between 65% - 80% of the premium meaning that upon termination, the employee would pay roughly 300% to 400% of the premiums they paid while employed. So, if you're paying a $300.00 monthly premium while employed, under COBRA, your premium would be in the range of $900.00 - $1,200.00 a month. This would be challenging for the vast majority of the population.

But even if you don't lose your job, any fancy health benefit you enjoy this year may just not be available next year. You don't control that - your employer does.

[HAL 9000 96]

Hal, I haven't read every post so I'm not sure on your stance on this.

McGill is a great school though!

Oh I think a Canadian-like system should be blended into the US system, with people retaining the right to pay more in a private setting if they so choose to.

I also laugh when I see azzholes get treatment from people they previously shun out of pure stupidity. But that is another thread, another time.

Hmmmm.

McGill for postdoc is going to be on my list.

Uuuuh... loveliest campus ever brother

I like nice campuses.

[Emancipation 2]

I hate the fact that when you think of US Healthcare, the first thing that comes to my mind is money. How much is this going to cost me. My husband would rather have risked his life to save us a few dollars!

No wonder other countries are outliving those in the US...they can't afford to live.

Yep... nailed it on the head.. my husband's ex tells her children not to jump or run up staircases because they might fall and break a bone and she can't afford another hospital visit

[HAL 9000 96]

You know it's sad when your husband has to go to the hospital for an emergency CT scan for possible appendicitis and when the outpatient registration person asks you can you pay your co-pay today? Me thinking it was going to be $50 and they come out and say "that will be $150 please or 10% of what this is going to cost" and your husband, who is in obvious pain looks at you and starts to cry because you know that it means that things just got a little tighter.

He was seriously thinking of NOT having it done because of how much it was going to cost us.

Thankfully it turned out to not be appendicitis, but now we will be at least $600 owing to the hospital(deductible).

This was last night folks.

My husband will be the first to tell you that he didn't believe in the Canadian healthcare system....after last night, he says to me "let's move to Canada" where he would have been taken to the ER and had the same procedure done in probably the same amount of time (we waited around 4 hours to have the test).

My mom, who still lives in Canada has COPD. Is on oxygen, 15 different medications, owns a scooter and an Airsep machine. She was lucky enough to have worked for the Ontario gov't and had supplemental insurance as well as short and long term disability.

She receives a disability cheque every month, and hasn't had to pay 1cent for any of the things she needs to survive. In fact, despite the fact that her lungs are in such terrible shape, she is able to travel and enjoy what life she has left....she's 55.

She's been in the hospital countless times for infection and pneumonia, in a semi-private room (thanks to the insurance).

Now, she's in a program to possibly have a lung transplant through Toronto General Hospital. All paid for by OHIP or her other insurance. She happened to be watching Good Morning America or Today (something of the like) and they were interviewing a man, who had COPD and needed a lung transplant...but couldn't get it done because it was going to cost $80,000-100,000 dollars. He was trying to raise the money so he could live.

That is disgusting.

I hate the fact that when you think of US Healthcare, the first thing that comes to my mind is money. How much is this going to cost me. My husband would rather have risked his life to save us a few dollars!

No wonder other countries are outliving those in the US...they can't afford to live.

But according to some retards here, your family members don't deserve this because they can't afford it.

Hope all turns out well for you guys.