The world famous Mayo Clinic, a non-profit organization that owns medical facilities in Minnesota, Arizona and Florida, received much attention during the 2009 health care reform debates in the United States. President Obama praised them for delivering high quality, efficient health care and hailed them as a model to be duplicated across the nation. This shining example [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

In June 2009, we visit my in-laws on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. They are avid golfers who enjoy playing the game daily. So my husband and I don’t think much about it when his father Lyall is experiencing indigestion and has trouble swallowing his food. He tells us that his doctor is treating him [...]

You don’t have to be a brain surgeon to know that a man who has undergone brain surgery needs to remain in hospital for more than two days. Especially if he is already considered to be a high-risk patient due to pre-existing conditions including blindness and heart problems. The Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba tried [...]

Many Canadians think that our health care system, more affectionately known as Medicare, is a fair system. This is supported by the belief that a government-run health care system serves the “public good” by allotting medical care based on “need” rather than “ability to pay”. In theory, a health care system serving the collective “public good” sounds [...]

In June 2009, the Leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) of Canada, Mr. Jack Layton, travelled to Washington, D.C. to deliver a speech extolling the virtues of Canadian health care. His speech forgot to mention a few notable points like why so many of our politicians choose to leave Canada for medical care, the [...]