Canadians Don’t Want Our Healthcare

Posted on 06/07/2011 at 11:53 am by Bob Cesca

One of the big lies in the ongoing healthcare debate is that Canadians, who enjoy single-payer healthcare, would rather come to America for treatment. The peer-reviewed journal Health Affairs performed a study that completely debunked this myth.

…they examined data from the 18,000 Canadians who participated in the National Population Health Survey. In the previous year, only 90 of those 18,000 Canadians had received care in the United States; only 20 of them had done so electively.

Here are those numbers in convenient pie-chart form.

There’s no wiggle room there.

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  • Anonymous

    That is an AWESOME graph…

  • Anonymous

    Seems that a pie-chart is worth a thousand words..

  • Anonymous

    Totally true. This is completely a non issue in this country regardless of where your politics lie. Only the purely wingnuttiest wannabe Americans,would want to make a switch. It is not perfect that is for sure, but I feel comfort in knowing if I get really sick I won’t have to sell my house to pay for it.

    Here is my personal analogy: My buddy and his wife moved to Colorado for a very well paying job with a kick ass health plan. They had a child, no issues, in and out in 1 day: Cost $3000.00 with kick ass coverage, $18,000 without.

    My wife had a complicated birth of our baby: cesarean birth, 5 days in hospital, with no private supplementary coverage the bill was $0.00. Of course we do pay a little more taxes.

  • Anonymous

    that’s fabulous!

  • http://www.southwestwoodandsilverartist.com dildenusa

    The profitizing and politicizing of sickness and death that is done here in the US in the name of corporatism obviously does not sit well with our socially advanced neighbors to the north.

  • Anonymous

    I’m an American living in Quebec for a few years. I’ll take the Canadian system ANY DAY…I had excellent coverage in the U.S. but this is way, way easier. Yes, taxes are higher but it all comes out in the end. http://www.canadapisani.blogspot.com

  • Anonymous

    That’s a very useful link for anyone arguing with wingnuts over healthcare.

    In the previous year, only 90 of those 18,000 Canadians had received care in the United States; only 20 of them had done so electively.

    Assuming that sample is representative, somewhere between 0.4% and 0.5% of Canadians receive medical treatment in the US per year. (Oh, the horrors of single-payer insurance!) And poll after poll shows satisfaction with the healthcare system in Canada is very high. (Tyranny!)

    Canada has more problems with their system than other single-payer or national health systems elsewhere in the world, but, on the whole, I’d rather have their problems than ours.

    –alopecia

  • Anonymous

    As a Canadian I promise you I have little desire to go to the US– especially not for medical care. I was born in the US and lived there for 60+ years. I’m not rich and I’m old enough to be a fairly regular user of health care. The Canadian system is not perfect but what a relief it is not to worry about how I’m to pay the doctor or hospital.

  • Anonymous

    But, but, when they were running the oh noes dems wanna kill your meemaw commercials they always included a Canadian who would love to have the privilege of paying our “reasonable” costs just to get our level of care.

    • http://twitter.com/bphoon Brian C

      Yeah, that was real believable, especially since Canada’s level of care ranks consistently above ours–along with around 17 other industrialized nations. Like France. Like Japan. Like Germany. Like the UK. Like Sweden…etc…All single-payer systems. Imagine that.