Got Healthcare, eh?
Canada 's Health care system from a Canadians point of view.
>>
>> Hey Guys; I seen on the news up here in Canada where Hillary Clinton
>> introduced her new health care plan. Something similar to what we
>> have in
>> Canada . I also heard that Michael Moore was raving about the
>> health care up
>> here in Canada in his latest movie. As your friend and someone who
>> lives
>> with the Canada health care plan I thought I would give you some
>> facts about
>> this great medical plan that we have in Canada .
>>
>> First of all:
>>
>> 1) The health care plan in Canada is not free. We pay a premium
>> every month
>> of $96 for Shirley and I to be covered. Sounds great eh. What
>> they don't
>> tell you is how much we pay in taxes to keep the health care system
>> afloat.
>> I am personally in the 55% tax bracket. Yes 55% of my earnings go
>> to taxes.
>> A large portion of that and I am not sure of the exact amount goes
>> directly
>> to health care our #1 expense.
>>
>> 2) I would not classify what we have as health care plan, it is
>> more like a
>> health diagnosis system. You can get in to to see a doctor quick
>> enough so
>> he can tell you "yes indeed you are sick or you need an operation"
>> but now
>> the challenge becomes getting treated or operated on. We have
>> waiting lists
>> out the ying yang some as much as 2 years down the road.
>>
>> 3) Rather than fix what is wrong with you, the usual tactic in
>> Canada is to
>> prescribe drugs. Have a pain here - is a drug to take - not what
>> is causing
>> the pain and why. No time for checking you out because it is more
>> important
>> to move as many patients thru as possible each hour for Government
>> re-imbursement
>>
>>
>> 4) Many Canadians do not have a family Doctor.
>>
>> 5) Don't require emergency treatment as you may wait for hours in the
>> emergency room waiting for treatment.
>>
>> 6) Shirley's dad cut his hand on a power saw a few weeks back and it
>> required that his hand be put in a splint - to our surprise we had
>> to pay
>> $125 for a splint because it is not covered under health care -
>> plus we have
>> to pay $60 for each visit for him to check it out each week.
>>
>> 7) Shirley's cousin was diagnosed with a heart blockage. Put on a
>> waiting
>> list. Died before he could get treatment.
>>
>> 8) Government allots so many operations per year. When that is
>> done no more
>> operations, unless you go to your local newspaper and plead your
>> case and
>> embarrass the government then money suddenly appears.
>>
>> 9)The Government takes great pride in telling us how much more they
>> are
>> increasing the funding for health care but waiting lists never get
>> shorter.
>> Government just keeps throwing money at the problem but it never
>> goes away.
>> But they are good at finding new ways to tax us, but they don't
>> call it a
>> tax anymore it is now a user fee.
>>
>> 10) My mother needs an operation for a blockage in her leg but
>> because she
>> is a smoker they will not do it. Despite her and my father paying
>> into the
>> health care system all these years. My Mom is 80 years of age.
>> Now there
>> is talk that maybe we should not treat fat and obese people either
>> because
>> they are a drain on the health care system. Let me see now, what
>> we want in
>> Canada is a health care system for healthy people only. That
>> should reduce
>> our health care costs.
>>
>> 11) Forget getting a second opinion, what you see is what you get.
>>
>> 12) I can spend what money I have left after taxes on booze,
>> cigarettes,
>> junk food and anything else that could kill me but I am not allowed
>> by law
>> to spend my money on getting an operation I need because that would be
>> jumping the queue. I must wait my turn except if I am a hockey
>> player or
>> athlete then I can get looked at right away. Go figger. Where
>> else in the
>> world can you spend money to kill yourself but not allowed to spend
>> money to
>> get healthy.
>>
>> 13) Oh did I mention that immigrants are covered automatically at
>> tax payer
>> expense having never contributed a dollar to the system and pay no
>> premiums.
>>
>> 14) Oh yeh we now give free needles to drug users to try and keep them
>> healthy. Wouldn't want a sickly druggie breaking into your house and
>> stealing your things. But people with diabetes who pay into the
>> health care
>> system have to pay for their needles because it is not covered by the
>> health care system.
>>
>> I send this out not looking for sympathy but as the election looms
>> in the
>> states you will be hearing more and more about universal health
>> care down
>> there and the advocates will be pointing to Canada . I just want to
>> make
>> sure that you hear the truth about health care up here and have
>> some food
>> for thought and informed questions to ask when broached with this
>> subject.
>>
>> Step wisely and don't make the same mistakes we have.
>>
>> Dean