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From: peterr@utcsrgv.UUCP (Peter Rowley)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Canadian universal medicare works
Message-ID: <2265@utcsrgv.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 16-Sep-83 13:09:38 EDT
Article-I.D.: utcsrgv.2265
Posted: Fri Sep 16 13:09:38 1983
Date-Received: Sat, 17-Sep-83 01:14:01 EDT
Organization: CSRG, University of Toronto
Lines: 18

I'm surprised that no-one has mentioned the Canadian universal medicare system
which operates very well.  Recently, the universality of the system has been
threatened somewhat by so-called "user fees" (paid to hospitals) and "extra
billing" (by doctors who charge more than the standard rates) which have been
permitted by some conservative provincial governments, but it still works
fine, with no possibility that a serious illness will wipe out a family's 
savings.  And to suggest that all our doctors are "drunken quacks" is
preposterous.  Nor does it take a long time to get an appointment, with all
emergency cases handled promptly and routine check-ups available within a few
weeks at most.  In some specialities (e.g. opthamology) it can take several
months to schedule a check-up, but all that means is that one makes your next
appointment right after a check-up.
  It has always been rather astonishing, and a bit sad, to me that the US
cannot muster enough collective humanity to implement universal medicare.
It is the main economic reason that Canadians seem to give when they say they
are apprehensive about moving south.

peter rowley, U. Toronto