Top Ten Countdown: Reasons for Leaving the Canadian Health Care Queues
10) You want to outshine the North Koreans and Cubans. 9) You really won’t lose your Canadian Identity. We didn’t invent single-payer, universal health care. We adopted the system from Great Britain. 8) The politicians, health care bureaucrats, and care providers telling you to “wait your turn” in the queue will most likely never personally experience one. 7) You decide that... [Read more]
What Are Your Health Care Dollars Buying?
Asking Canadians if they are getting value for their money when it comes to spending on health care is like asking a blind person if they can see better when the room light is turned on or off. We are forcibly made oblivious to the specific costs of medical services we receive in Canada. This prevents us from making any cost-benefit analysis concerning the quality and performance of our publicly funded... [Read more]
Why it’s Time to Pull the Plug on Single-Payer Health Care
Two patient cases receiving media attention in recent months serve to illustrate the true impact of our single-payer health care system on the personal health care decisions of Canadians. Isaac and Rebecka May have obtained a court injunction temporarily stopping the Alberta government from pulling the plug on medical care for their infant son. The Mays received a letter on January 13, 2010,... [Read more]
Danny Williams’ Life Saving Leap Raises Questions About the Politics of Canadian Health Care
Many questions are being raised about Danny Williams’ choice to have heart surgery performed in the United States. If he were not the Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador his choice would amount to nothing more than another number added to the growing list of Canadians leaving the country for medical care. The truth is that this questioning has little to do with his personal health and more... [Read more]
Blowing the Whistle on Patient Safety: Why Patients Need to Speak Out
Patient safety is a hot topic in Canada and one that often leaves our politicians scrambling to maintain some semblance of action. They do so by creating more federal, provincial and territorial agencies and programs. Many of these government-funded initiatives are set-up as independent (arm’s length) non-profit organizations. Perhaps the biggest endeavour to date is the creation of the Canadian... [Read more]