Letter: Canada system worth looking at

Every time I talk with my friends and family about Obamacare, the topic of Nazi Germany seems to come up.

Many conservatives feel that government intervention with the health-care system will lead us down the dangerous path of socialism, but they also fail to look north. The country of Canada has been operating for decades with a system of health care much more liberal than Obama’s actions. In fact, when the government of Taiwan was implementing a health-care system in 1995, they created a commission of economic experts led by Harvard professor William Hsiao.

The study examined the systems of six high-income countries: the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Canada and Japan. After careful review, the Canadian single-payer system with universal insurance coverage was recommended, since it offers people free choice of doctors and hospitals, and it has competition on the delivery side between public and private hospitals. Also, the quality of health services is very high, and people were very satisfied with the system from the 1980s through the mid-1990s.

These findings contradict the Republican claims that we have the best health care in the world. This claim neglects the concept of health-care system. Yet whenever a person tries to make this distinction, they are immediately hit with the socialist label and told how Obama will lead us back to the days of Nazi Germany. If that were the case, wouldn’t we be seeing this north of the border? In fact no Canadians are goose-stepping in the streets, because the Nazi rhetoric merely represents a disgusting part of American politics — tactics driven by fear while ignoring research and logic. Les Miles’ offense philosophy will not lead to the end of LSU football, and Obamacare will not destroy this nation.

Obamacare may contradict the political philosophy of many people throughout Louisiana, but that does not mean that the policy lacks potential. Just like the LSU football team does whatever it can to be the best, Americans need to set aside the partisan divide and do what is best for the health-care system. So the next time someone uses the Nazi term with Obama, stop and think about what is being said, and if you want to learn more about the success of Canada’s health-care system you can watch Michael Moore’s documentary “Sicko.” I know he’s a liberal filmmaker, but it’s not like he’s Joseph Goebbels.

Drew Ganucheaux

health care worker

Baton Rouge

Comments

1) Comment by chem - 09/09/2012

No, I don't agree with unions haven't helped. I know of no case where a union is at fault for anything going bad. Both parties agree to a contract, so both know exactly what to expect. It is not a unilateral process. I have been involved with contract negotiations and I can tell you that the company holds most of the cards. If an impasse is reached, a company can simply institute a contract. The reason the post office and other companies find themselves in financial difficulty is because of very poor management decisions. And that is it. Despite lies to the contrary, the workers under a union contract have very little to nothing to say about decisions being made at the business. Unions are an easy target, but it is not the correct target. Management is to blame, pure and simple.

2) Comment by Whatnow - 09/09/2012

Chem, the unions certainly haven't helped, now have they?

3) Comment by chem - 08/09/2012

yea, the whole world is going down the tubes because of unions. get real.

4) Comment by Attila - 07/09/2012

@gofigger: Believe it or not the Postal system was doing a great job up to about the late 50's. Mail was always delivered on time at a cheap rate. Care to take a guess as to what happened? In a word "unions"....and the rest is history.

5) Comment by Whatnow - 07/09/2012

DMJ, I do agree with you that everyone should have insurance to cover expensive treatments and surgeries. I just don't think it's the government's place to mandate it and then "punish" those people with a tax. The government screws up more than it fixes and cannot take care of the programs already in place now. It will just inflate with more government "jobs", fraud and waste just like every other government program out there. I do correct myself. You believe everything "Progressive". Where are the promises of lowering health care cost? Have they disappeared? Not a thing was done to lower the price of drugs or healthcare costs. Nada, just secret meetings with lobbyists for the drug companies and healthcare industry. Lies about how much Obamacare would cost have already been found along with what is actually covered. You may want to read something before you vote for it, but those Democrat idiots didn't and all you Dems and liberals don't even care.

6) Comment by chem - 07/09/2012

I'm curious. Would someone who thinks that universal healthcare, like in Canada, UK, etc., is a bad idea, please explain why? I really don't understand why that is a bad thing.

7) Comment by DMJ - 07/09/2012

Whatnow, one question....if I believe everything "the government" tells me...then do I also believe Republicans, who run half of "the government"? Didn't think that through, did you? And I'm sticking to my original statement that the vast majority of the population needs insurance to cover expensive treatments and surgeries. I never would have thought this would be up for discussion. Oh well....what else shall we debate over? The color of grass? I say it's green. But maybe I just heard that from "the government".... This is dumb.

8) Comment by foldgers - 07/09/2012

**wouldn't be worth it.** NOT "would"

9) Comment by foldgers - 07/09/2012

@ex-la: My point is NOT that we have the best heath care system, but the best new technologies in hospitals. Eventually those expensive procedures with reduce in cost, like I said.. just like the computer you are typing on. But you take away incentives for doctors and hospitals, then why on earth would they invest as much money into R&D? It would be worth it. Invest hundreds of millions only to NEVER make your money back? There is no reason to innovate when you take out profit. I do agree insurance is too expensive but there are other ways to make it cheaper. But forcing someone to pay for insurance is not the answer. Like I asked before, what have all these countries you mentioned and mentioned in this letter given to the world of medicine in the last two decades? I have no idea, but I would be willing to bet that more innovation has come from America than anywhere else in the field of medicine and medical equipment.

10) Comment by ex-louisianian - 07/09/2012

The postal system can be saved (easily) if it were allowed to operate as a nationwide credit union with non-morgage lending duties as it did in the 1970s. The fix for Social Security (another government program the GOP despises because it works too well) are just as easy -- remove the $109,000 payroll tax limitation and it will continue its surpluses for decades. Medicare/Medicaid is more difficult -- my personal opinion is to make both universal and let the private health industry wither. If that is too difficult, then regulate the private health care industry into a non-profit public utility (like Switzerland and Netherlands do) to keep premiums and deductibles from skyrocketing month-in-month-out, as much as the CEOs of Aetna and WellPoint will take exception. And, rightists, please, enough with the fantasy that people outside of the Third World flock to the US to take advantage of our overpriced and poor-outcome healthcare system. It's utter baloney (and worse) -- ask a Brit, or a Canadian, or an Australian what he thinks of the US health care system, and be prepared to have your feelings hurt.

11) Comment by nimby? - 07/09/2012

look for public health care to express the same quality of public education ...

12) Comment by gofigger - 07/09/2012

I agree something needs to be done with healthcare cost and we all know, just like gas prices, there is really no competition in these industries to make them lower their prices. Does the government not control the price of electricity?

13) Comment by no1zson - 07/09/2012

Ha! Because you always hear those stories of people coming from far away in order to get to Canada in order to get the best care! I don't want to laugh because it is such a serious subject, but putting the government into this equation only makes it worse (as with everything else). The government cannot make everyone equal by bringing up the lower level, so they always attempt to bring down the upper level. When that starts to involve healthcare you now take what is the best system in the world (not perfect) and bring it down to just another system. Great. Poor healthcare for everyone.

14) Comment by Whatnow - 07/09/2012

DMJ, "for the vast majority of the population" really???? You may believe the propaganda, but I don't. And ugh, you believe everything that the government tells you and that doesn't surprise me one bit. The Obamacare money may need to be shifted to Medicaid with all the people out of jobs these days. And you think Obama will be the one to fix it all? All he has done is to throw gas on the fire.

15) Comment by gofigger - 07/09/2012

Just like the Postal System, it will be a cluster&%*$

16) Comment by Sandy - 07/09/2012

I made a trip to Canada a few years back. The guys working at the place were mostly Americans. One of them had recently become very ill. After several trips to the hospital in Canada, one of the doctors pulled his friends to the side and told them that the best thing they could do for him was get him back across the border to an American medical facility as quickly as possible, since they could not do anything for him for a couple of weeks. They immediately got him on a plane for home, where he immediately had his appendix removed.

17) Comment by foldgers - 07/09/2012

What people do not seem to realize is that without the proper motivation, cash, for some doctors and hospitals, that advancements in the medical care world would cease to exist. Have any of the countries mentioned in this letter created any new medical advancements in healthcare? I highly doubt it. But, when there are some people willing and able to pay for these expensive BETTER procedures here in the US, eventually, the price for those will drop, as does everything in a country that relies on competition. Hence the computer you are typing on now, it would have cost you $10,000 in the mid 90's... only a few select few could afford them, but wait... with competition and the drive to make more money, it now only costs a few hundred dollars. In fact, what has Canada produced for the world lately? Besides the majority of funny actors???

18) Comment by DMJ - 07/09/2012

Whatnow, I actually agree with you- healthcare in the United States is better for those who have lots of money and can afford to pay cash for expensive surgeries. However, for the vast majority of the population, that's not an option. Hence, the Affordable Care Act. Not sure how climate scientists fit into this debate, but I guess it doesn't surprise me that you're also a climate change denier. Ugh...

19) Comment by The_Host - 07/09/2012

There shouldn't be any doom and gloom over the healthcare law. The government is going to dictate how it all works from now on. I mean what could possibly go wrong with them at the wheel? Everything they touch ends up being much cheaper and more efficient, nothing to fear.

20) Comment by Whatnow - 06/09/2012

DMJ, and aganuch, you can both put spin and twist my words on this all you want. He paid out of pocket to come here because their health care sucks. They even provided the same procedure. Otherwise, he would have stayed in Canada for their marvelous services. Economists? I believe some of them talk for whoever best benefits their data. Just like some global warming scientists and Democratic politicians. I don't believe them either. The middle class can't afford to come here for their medical treatment, because they aren't covered, yes, duh. You play me for stupid, but you are the one that should pay attention to what you write. Why would they pay out of pocket when they could save their money and use Canadian health care? Because it sucks. http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/homo-consumericus/201206/don-t-romanticize-the-canadian-healthcare-system

21) Comment by ScotB - 06/09/2012

Canada does not have nearly as many illegal immigrants burdening their system. They provide health benefits based on the status of the parents, they do not have an anchor baby system like we do here in the US. Also, they are much tougher on employers who employ illegal aliens. Finally, Canada is only 1/10 the population size of the United States (less than the population of the State of California). They are also not burdened by the cost of a military, since we defacto protect them. There is more I could go on about, but that is a good start.

22) Comment by DMJ - 06/09/2012

The only Canadians who come to the U.S. for health care are those who can afford to come out of pocket for expensive medical procedures. Think about it. Their insurance is Canadian and won't cover treatment in the U.S. (duh!), so they pay out of pocket. In other words....health care is (supposedly) better in the U.S. for those who don't need insurance to pay for it. Whatnow, were you trying to prove what liberals have been saying about healthcare in the U.S. for years, or was that a happy accident?

23) Comment by nimby? - 06/09/2012

ex-louisianian , perhaps in these states these 'sectors of the population' have chosen to educate themselves rather than exist on partisan promises as they have since the 60's ; a faithful lapdog ...

24) Comment by aganuch - 06/09/2012

Thanks for your Washington Post story, because you just made the letter's point. A "canadian official" comes to the US for health care, not a middle class family. Why don't you look at research instead of the stories that are out there, cause many economists refute the Canadians myth with hard data! You should check out the piece by economist Steven Katz at University of Michigan titled --- Phantoms In The Snow: Canadians’ Use Of Health Care Services In The United States. The study examines the extent to which Canadian residents seek medical care across the border, collecting data from ambulatory care facilities and hospitals located in Michigan, New York State, and Washington State during 1994–1998. The study concluded that "Surprisingly few Canadians travel to the United States for health care, despite the persistence of the myth" this finding was supported by array of data.

25) Comment by Whatnow - 06/09/2012

I'll bet the libs will like the term Obamanism. Heck, they'll bow down to it. I'm with you, gta. And if Canadian medical care is so great, why do they flock here to be treated? http://voices.washingtonpost.com/checkup/2010/02/canadian_premier_has_heart_sur.html

26) Comment by ex-louisianian - 06/09/2012

" to what sector of the population are you referring." MD, DE, and NY have 'sectors of the population' as large in percentage or in absolute numbers as the South, yet those three states have the lowest uninsured population rates of the US. Those 'sectors' simply serve as a convenient excuse or scapegoat for decades of negligence, corruption (as is outlined in another article about the LSU system), and willful mismanagement.

27) Comment by ex-louisianian - 06/09/2012

I don't see the logicality of having indigent people, or anyone else, suffering from decades of deferred health care on account of either a lack of facilities or the inability to afford private health insurance premiums. Poor health outcomes of the indigent in a state with as colossal a poor population as LA lowers standard of living and quality of life and negatively affects everyone there.

28) Comment by chem - 06/09/2012

Frankly, I don't believe the story by Vandelay. I have met people from Canada, the U.K., and Germany and not one of them would replace their healthcare system with what we have in the U.S. I've heard these kind of stories but have never actually seen anyone who experienced the kind of story that Vandelay puts forth. It is garbage.

29) Comment by Art Vandelay - 06/09/2012

Forget all of the liberal rhetoric and over-used platitudes spewed forth here. I can tell you first hand; my Aunt lives in Quebec, she was suffering severe pain due to a bad hip, she went to get a hip replacement and was told that she just needed to medicate and come back in 8-10 years...8 years later she came back to get that much needed procedure, she was then told "oh no, you're too old for it now". She is still suffering to this day. That is not what I want here in America.

30) Comment by gta - 06/09/2012

@chem You say a loud minority is preventing the health care plan from moving forward. When your party is losing seats in Congress, you're not the majority any longer. The people of this country have spoken and the majority do not want this. Heck, we didn't even have a chance to review the healthcare bill before it was passed, despite promises that we would. What did Pelosi say - we have to pass it to see what's in it? That's a scary comment from someone elected to look after our best interests. The majority of people do not trust this and would rather do this slower and do it right than accept the ramrod bill that was pushed through Congress that is bloated with non-health related attachments. I don't trust Congress to "fix it" down the road like they've "fixed" everything else. Show me one government program that isn't bloated and plagued with issues. I'm not ready to trust my healthcare to the same system that administers FEMA, TSA, IRS, Medicare, VA, and many other broken programs that have long turnaround times with overburdened policies/procedures.

31) Comment by DMJ - 06/09/2012

And when none of those doom and gloom scenarios materialize, conservatives will take credit for the successes of the ACA and vow to "protect it" just like Republicans have done with Medicare and Social Security. Yeah, yeah, yeah...we're all psychics, right? Ugh.

32) Comment by nimby? - 06/09/2012

"Unfortunately, there are many in this country, especially in the South, that are illiterate, borderline illiterate, and grossly undereducated that cannot think for themselves" , to what sector of the population are you referring ? . could we start with mothers and fathers acting like parents , like getting their children in school and keeping them there ?

33) Comment by Attila - 06/09/2012

@chem:The demographics of the states you cite certainly the major contributing factor in what you refer to as against progress; the majority of blacks, and to a lesser degree, poor whites. You can apply your rant to those who produce little or nothing yet avail themselves to the things that are bought and paid for with the taxes of those who work and produce. Of course we who work and pay taxes get up in arms as we find ourselves paying more and more to support those same people you describe while our families have to do with less. Dumping 40 million more people into the private health care system will just exacerbate the situation. Diverting 700 billion dollars from medicare is going to "save" the program? Just more typical convoluted liberal logic. Let's have this conversation again when, and IF, Obamacare ever gets implemented. When you have to wait 3 times as long to get an appt. with your doctor, or cannot get a hospital bed when you need it because of all of the new "insured" people you will have a much needed attitude adjustment.

34) Comment by chem - 06/09/2012

Agree with Bighug, DMJ, and ex-louisianian. I think it is a very loud minority that keeps the U.S. from moving forward with regard to healthcare. Unfortunately, there are many in this country, especially in the South, that are illiterate, borderline illiterate, and grossly undereducated that cannot think for themselves and get up in arms when those that are against progress throw around the -ism's as DMJ said. Once the ACA is fully implemented, people will not want to repeal it. I think, I hope, that we will adopt a single payer plan like Canada or some of the other more modern countries.

35) Comment by ex-louisianian - 06/09/2012

"... those who need to take it to heart never will". Absolutely, especially in LA, MS, and AR, the three (diseased and impoverished) states that need a nationalized health care system in place the most.

36) Comment by DMJ - 06/09/2012

Great letter, Drew. Unfortunately, those who need to take it to heart never will. Opposition (and the hyperbolic rhetoric contained therein) to The ACA is like religion to Republicans. They don't need to question it...or have an open mind....or listen to reason, logic, stats or facts....they just need to hate and oppose it. You can always tell a Republican who's too lazy to think when they start throwing around the 'isms. "It's soclialism! It's facsism!" Blah, blah, blah.. It's been my experience that the more one rants about socialism, communism, or any 'ism, they less they know about the history of sociopolitical movements.

37) Comment by [e-mail] - 06/09/2012

"Potential"? The fact is that Obamacare is already a direct attempt at subjugation. Any potential in its resemblance to what they're doing in Canada is only socialism.

38) Comment by Bighug - 06/09/2012

The high cost of the Affordable Care Act is often quoted by conservatives, but how does that cost compare to what is now paid for medical care? I doubt that the cost is much different. If you want to know where health care money is going, see which people in the field are wearing Rollex watches and driving expensive German autos.