Socialised health care in Canada poll

[spinn]

I am not confused. I needed a checkup to get insurance a few years ago.

I asked the DR before going in what it would cost. His office manager said $450, so of course they charged me $1300, then reduced it all the way down to $1100.

Trust me with tests, anything close to a physical costs $1000 minimum.

 

[Kassz007]

Quote from Robert Weinstein:


It appears to me that in Canada they basically take around 25% of someones income through taxes at many levels and apply it to health care.

This estimate is WAY too high...
TOTAL taxes would be approximately 25%, not 25% spent on health care alone.

 

[Kassz007]

Quote from Mom0/pH0x:


another huge factor here regarding all of this that i haven't seen anyone mention is MALPRACTICE insurance which in the usa can easily consume 30-50% of a MDs income, not the case in old canadia...we have to factor that into this whole 'higher wages in the usa' equation

Good point, never thought to consider this.

 

[stevegee58]

Quote from Banff01:

Nonsense! Three months top in a super busy metropolitan area like Vancouver.

You're prolly right; I got my info second-hand from a disaffected Canadian. Still, doesn't 3 months sound like a long time anyway? If I'm worried, I want the damn thing right now!

Anyway, American or Canadian, the wealthy are always first in line for everything.

 

[Banff01]

Quote from stevegee58:

You're prolly right; I got my info second-hand from a disaffected Canadian. Still, doesn't 3 months sound like a long time anyway? If I'm worried, I want the damn thing right now!

It normally does not even take that long. The waiting lists are priority based so if there is a chance of something serious like cancer you should get a preference. If you don't trust your doctor and are still really worried that your appointment maybe too late you can call around and ask for cancellations. You will usually get your appointement within a couple of weeks. And here I am talking again about busy Vancouver. The situation was even better in Edmonton where I lived about 8 years ago - there were almost no wait times for anything.

Quote from stevegee58:
Anyway, American or Canadian, the wealthy are always first in line for everything.

I'm with you on that one. Money sure can take you places and open some important doors. The great thing about Canada is that even the really poor people are not completely left behind when it comes to health care. It's very easy to hate the system when you are on the upswing in life but life often comes down to how we handle the downswing and if you can't even go to see a doctor everything becomes thousand times worse.

 

[Bootsie]

Quote from Shreddog:

I think a better poll would be this:

1) Do you prefer Canadian healthcare to US employer based healthcare? No employer based US healthcare is superior.

2) Do you prefer Canadian healthcare to US individual based healthcare? Yes absolutely.

And therein lies the rub. Employer based healthcare is becoming harder and harder to come by.

It is obvious that the people arguing the US is better aren't self-employed traders. If you were you'd be buying your own health insurance and you'd be fearing the day you get truly sick and your rates go through the roof or your insurance company starts denying coverage when you aren't in a position to battle them.

The whole concept of individually purchased insurance is fundamentally flawed. You lose the benefits of group buying power and when you need the service the most the price goes up. But that's where we are heading in this recession.

I don't think there is a post that nails it better than this...

 

[Frostie]

Quote from stevegee58:

You're prolly right; I got my info second-hand from a disaffected Canadian. Still, doesn't 3 months sound like a long time anyway? If I'm worried, I want the damn thing right now!

Anyway, American or Canadian, the wealthy are always first in line for everything.

If you're worried? Classic case of the "oh noez my ankle hurtz I need MRI now" kind of crap that creates waiting lists in the first place.

 

[Frostie]

Quote from Mom0/pH0x:

there is so much propaganda in this thread it's absurd...

first of all, private health care IS available in canada, if you don't like the public system, you can go get private care in canada, private medicine isn't banned in canada, although it's obviously alot less common... the only caveat that i'm aware of is the province of quebec having some stipulation on private health care that i'm not too familiar with...

Health Canada has strict restrictions on types of care that can be delivered at a "private" clinics. If the care is on the "covered" list, then no, a "private clinic" cannot treat you. Most of these types of businesses exist for care related to plastic surgery, abortions, dentists, eye care etc. I don't think there is a single private hospital in Canada that will do, for example, heart surgery.

Although, most doctors do operate their own offices for checkups, prescriptions, initial diagnosis etc, but they have to use provincial institutions for procedures.

 

[Angrycat]

Quote from Mom0/pH0x:

i'd also like to add that i'm very impressed with how civil everyone has kept this discussion(considering the "excitable" nature of this crowd) about what is usually a very sensitive topic which inexorably carries political implications... i'd also like to personally commend torontotrader2 and achillies on not finding a way to somehow relate healthcare problems back to the jews or israel, or zionism, or klingons, or romulans etc etc....

oh and just for future reference i think it would be helpful for everyone to state their nationality along with their perspective... i am an american, born and raised, but have also inhabited canada, although briefly...

I am an immigrant from the Soviet Union (back when it was the USSR) who lived in Western Europe before moving the the United States. My mother's family is comprised of mostly doctors who practiced in the Soviet Union before moving to Canada and some who practice medicine in the United States.

I was very sick while in Russia and Europe and have spent a lot of time in hospitals in the U.S., Europe and the Soviet Union. So, that's my perspective.

 

[Angrycat]

Quote from spinn:

I am not confused. I needed a checkup to get insurance a few years ago.

I asked the DR before going in what it would cost. His office manager said $450, so of course they charged me $1300, then reduced it all the way down to $1100.

Trust me with tests, anything close to a physical costs $1000 minimum.

Spinn,

A lot of that cost shenanigans is the insurance fraud issue I posted about. But, insurance in NY state will cost you $1,000 per month and still not cover the full cost of your physical. Currently, I'm in a state with far fewer mandates and I'm able to buy catastrophe insurance for about $200 and pay for the rest out of pocket. Much cheaper. Plus, the catastrophe insurance gets me price deals on all tests and stuff like that.

Still, that that doctor sounds uber expensive. The most expensive doctor I've ever been to for a regular physical in NYC (I mention this because this is a high cost area) who did not take insurance of any kind was $350 - and she was unusually expensive.