The Great Debate
A true story.
Just the other night, a co worker took a call from a client who had somehow stumbled into the wrong area. This client was from the US, and my co worker explained politely that he was speaking to the Canadian division and what he needed was the US division. Unfortunately at that hour of the night, the US division was closed and that he would have to call in the morning. The response from the client was "You guys 24 hour service AND health care?"
Coincidentally, this exchange took place on Wednesday at the same time President Obama was giving his speech. I did not get to hear the speech, but while in the lunch room, I happened to catch for the very first time the bit of republican propaganda courtesy of Shona Holmes, who I hate to admit it, is Canadian.
I stood there and watched while this woman lied through her teeth:
1. she did not have a brain tumor - she had a a Rathke's Cleft Cyst on her pitiuitary gland As it is a benign cyst, it is not even considered cancer, and it is not life threatening. Unlike what she says in that ad, her life was never in danger.
2. Given that her situation was not life threatening, she was given appointments with the appropriate specialists and would have seen them in due course, received appropriate treatment, recovered from any ill effects of the cyst and it would not have cost her a dime.
It was her choice to "jump" the queue, mortgage everything she owns and head to the Mayo, a fine institution with out a doubt. Ms Holmes has mortgaged everything she owns, borrowed from everyone she could and owes in excess of $100,000 and is, as i understand it, trying to get OHIP pay her expenses.
The thing is, under our system, if a certain type of treatment is not available in Canada, the patient is sent to a place where it is available courtesy of our health care system.
Ms Holmes will have a tough time proving her case and you know, i really hope OHIP turns her down. That way Ms Holmes can experience true solidarity with the millions of people who can neither get or afford health care under the American system she so espouses.
The true irony is that Ms Holmes could not have gotten coverage from any American HMO with her medical history.
The difference between Ms Holmes and I is that I really do have cancer, and without timely treatment, I would have died. I had the opportunity to head south for treatment, but declined because I felt then as I do now, that i could get no better care stateside than i could get here.
When I was diagnosed, i saw 4 different specialists in 3 cities in two provinces, and made my own choice of where and who was going to treat me.
This is something i wrote and posted on ASCF on this topic:
When ever I am in the mood to thank my lucky stars, I look south. I have cancer; this is a chronic condition that will be with me for the rest of my life as there is no cure and the best I can hope for is a control.
What I feel when I look south, is a combination of horror and incredulity, much the same as I felt when Hurricane Katrina hit: The wealthiest and most powerful nation on the planet will not (I won't say can't)take care of it's citizens.
I freely admit that the health care system here is not perfect However, the clamoring you hear from up here is a call to improve the system, *not* eradicate it. As a matter of fact, the politician who suggests that the system be dismantled might as well fold up his tents head back to wherever he came from, because he has just committed political suicide.
For every Shona Holmes who jumps the queue and heads south and with whom I understand the GOP has been making much political hay of late, there are a hundred or more Americans who come north for their medication. Some even come for chemotherapy, as the cost out of pocket is still less than what you would pay stateside.
Is health care expensive? You bet it is. However, of late I have seen the US government throw a lot of good money after bad on a lot of fronts, money, I might add, the US Taxpayer will likely never see it again. This money would have likely covered the cost of a decent health care system a few times over. Further, the Canadian system, warts and all, provides more heath care at less cost per capita than anything south of the 49th.
I pay for my health care through my taxes, and in truth, I can't see why any US taxpayer would not rather see some of that money that went to bail out wall street go to something that will benefit them in a really tangible way.
Is my health care substandard? I don't think so: my oncologist gets referrals from the Sloan Kettering in New York. Most importantly, I am still alive, and whatever debt I have is not due to medical costs.
Sure there is fine medical care stateside, but you can only access it if you have money, and if you have a chronic condition that requires ongoing care, you better have a lot of it. The leading cause of bankruptcy in the US is medical costs.
Just the other night, a co worker took a call from a client who had somehow stumbled into the wrong area. This client was from the US, and my co worker explained politely that he was speaking to the Canadian division and what he needed was the US division. Unfortunately at that hour of the night, the US division was closed and that he would have to call in the morning. The response from the client was "You guys 24 hour service AND health care?"
Coincidentally, this exchange took place on Wednesday at the same time President Obama was giving his speech. I did not get to hear the speech, but while in the lunch room, I happened to catch for the very first time the bit of republican propaganda courtesy of Shona Holmes, who I hate to admit it, is Canadian.
I stood there and watched while this woman lied through her teeth:
1. she did not have a brain tumor - she had a a Rathke's Cleft Cyst on her pitiuitary gland As it is a benign cyst, it is not even considered cancer, and it is not life threatening. Unlike what she says in that ad, her life was never in danger.
2. Given that her situation was not life threatening, she was given appointments with the appropriate specialists and would have seen them in due course, received appropriate treatment, recovered from any ill effects of the cyst and it would not have cost her a dime.
It was her choice to "jump" the queue, mortgage everything she owns and head to the Mayo, a fine institution with out a doubt. Ms Holmes has mortgaged everything she owns, borrowed from everyone she could and owes in excess of $100,000 and is, as i understand it, trying to get OHIP pay her expenses.
The thing is, under our system, if a certain type of treatment is not available in Canada, the patient is sent to a place where it is available courtesy of our health care system.
Ms Holmes will have a tough time proving her case and you know, i really hope OHIP turns her down. That way Ms Holmes can experience true solidarity with the millions of people who can neither get or afford health care under the American system she so espouses.
The true irony is that Ms Holmes could not have gotten coverage from any American HMO with her medical history.
The difference between Ms Holmes and I is that I really do have cancer, and without timely treatment, I would have died. I had the opportunity to head south for treatment, but declined because I felt then as I do now, that i could get no better care stateside than i could get here.
When I was diagnosed, i saw 4 different specialists in 3 cities in two provinces, and made my own choice of where and who was going to treat me.
This is something i wrote and posted on ASCF on this topic:
When ever I am in the mood to thank my lucky stars, I look south. I have cancer; this is a chronic condition that will be with me for the rest of my life as there is no cure and the best I can hope for is a control.
What I feel when I look south, is a combination of horror and incredulity, much the same as I felt when Hurricane Katrina hit: The wealthiest and most powerful nation on the planet will not (I won't say can't)take care of it's citizens.
I freely admit that the health care system here is not perfect However, the clamoring you hear from up here is a call to improve the system, *not* eradicate it. As a matter of fact, the politician who suggests that the system be dismantled might as well fold up his tents head back to wherever he came from, because he has just committed political suicide.
For every Shona Holmes who jumps the queue and heads south and with whom I understand the GOP has been making much political hay of late, there are a hundred or more Americans who come north for their medication. Some even come for chemotherapy, as the cost out of pocket is still less than what you would pay stateside.
Is health care expensive? You bet it is. However, of late I have seen the US government throw a lot of good money after bad on a lot of fronts, money, I might add, the US Taxpayer will likely never see it again. This money would have likely covered the cost of a decent health care system a few times over. Further, the Canadian system, warts and all, provides more heath care at less cost per capita than anything south of the 49th.
I pay for my health care through my taxes, and in truth, I can't see why any US taxpayer would not rather see some of that money that went to bail out wall street go to something that will benefit them in a really tangible way.
Is my health care substandard? I don't think so: my oncologist gets referrals from the Sloan Kettering in New York. Most importantly, I am still alive, and whatever debt I have is not due to medical costs.
Sure there is fine medical care stateside, but you can only access it if you have money, and if you have a chronic condition that requires ongoing care, you better have a lot of it. The leading cause of bankruptcy in the US is medical costs.