WARNING....this is NOT a political blog....just my own personal views.... 
I am not an expert on this subject, nor do I claim to be....and I am sure all the 'experts' here in blogland will jump to tell me what is wrong with my outlook....so be it....
Having experienced health care on both sides of the border....this is MY conclusions thus far....(please keep in mind I do not believe one country is superior over the other....to me they are equal....)
In Canada....when I went for a check up I didn't have to pay an additional fee....when I had surgery I didn't get a bill for hundreds of dollars in the mail while I was recovering....if I went to the ER one of the first questions they DIDN'T ask was how was I going to pay for this AND I didn't get a bill for thousands of dollars the following week....EVERYONE has health care regardless of their socio-economic status....
BOTTOM LINE....I didn't have to factor into my budget whether or not I could afford to be sick/need a physicians care or have a broken arm fixed....
Quit bashing the Canadian health care system....while it may not be perfect and it may not work for the US (gotta keep them thar insurance companies in business yah know)....it works for Canadians....and you will never here a Canuck say they don't have medical....
Y'all come back now....yah hear....  ....EH 
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Blogs by maggiemae684:
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| ....Canada....my Canada.... |
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AverageJoe
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Oct 15 @ 8:04AM
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 It's nice to hear an honest opinion for a change... from someone who is actually a Canadian. Instead of all the negative propaganda by American politicians trying to further their cause.
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skylar4
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Oct 15 @ 9:37AM
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....while it may not be perfect and it may not work for the US (gotta keep them thar insurance companies in business yah know)....it works for Canadians....and you will never here a Canuck say they don't have medical.... Maggie..... You are living it & I thank you for sharing your experience on this issue with us. We haven't actually lived that side of the coin, so your thoughts/experience are factual, helpful & gives us an honest opinion & insight of the other side. Thank You
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Jacksonboy
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Oct 15 @ 11:01AM
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May I ask in a nice way what this insurance costs? Is there a monthly bill for each Canadian or does the Canadian government pay for it?
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MahonMacRi
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Oct 15 @ 11:15AM
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Thank you for posting that, Maggie. I am also Canadian, and I have no beef with our health care system in general.
Actually, I think it speaks volumes about the people who originally set up our system that it still works quite well, despite over two decades of deliberate under-funding to create an artificial "health care crisis" and allow our legislators to bring in a two-tier system.
My only beef with Canadian doctors is that they enjoy an almost total lack of accountability; if a Canadian doctor makes extravagent promises to his patients, then fails to deliver on those promises, he is not made to answer for that failure, nor do his patients have any legal recourse or right to compensation.
Believe me, I speak from long and bitter experience in this matter; back in the mid 1990s, when I was still a young man in the prime of my life, I suffered a minor cartilage injury to my left knee. I'd had two similarly minor cartilage injuries earlier in my life, and both times I worked through them and recovered completely with the help of some excellent physical therapists.
This time around, both my primary care giver and his old med school buddy urged me to have arthroscopic surgery on both knees immediately..."or else."
The "or else" was that if I didn't have these procedures, I'd end up being completely disabled, unable to walk without assistance or do any of the physical things I enjoyed for the rest of my life...or at least, that's the bill of goods they sold me.
The med school buddy had gone on to become a top-ranked orthopedic surgeon, and he made all kinds of promises to the effect that my knees would be "90 to 95% after he fixed them"; well, he really "fixed" them, alright...in fact the arthroscopic surgeries left me worse off than before! I have been completely disabled (and in excruciating pain!) ever since I had the operations; these days, I'm almost completely unable to take care of myself, let alone exercise like I used to before he robbed me of my mobility.
In short, he ruined my knees and left me crippled, but because of this one flaw in our system, I can't sue him for malpractice. I could still try, of course, but some of the best legal minds in Canada have told me repeatedly that I have absolutely no chance of winning a medical malpractice lawsuit.
And even if by some slim chance I somehow managed to win, Canadian malpractice settlements have a mandatory legislated cap of $280,000, which isn't nearly enough to support me for the rest of my life. Furthermore, even if I stood a snowball's chance in Hell of winning a medical malpractice case, Canadian malpractice juries rarely award any financial compensation, let alone the maximum possible award.
So while our system is still one of the best in the world, the complete lack of accountability Canadian doctors enjoy means that if your doctor messes you up, you have literally no chance of ever being compensated for your loss, pain or injury.
While the rest of the system still works brilliantly, that one flaw means that people whose treatment or surgery is botched have to live the rest of their lives with pain and disability, without any chance of justice...believe me, that just plain sucks!
Just my .02's worth, sincerely,  "Mac"
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RRacer
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Oct 15 @ 12:12PM
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the goverment mostly pays for our health care hospital care and such but we also have benifit which cover 80% or are full coverage
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Blaiserboy
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Oct 15 @ 12:25PM
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Although we in Canada have what is called by some, a socialistic approach, (I find that there is ample opportunity to advance), I am pleased that we are unready to leave the disadvantaged without health care.
I find it so difficult to understand that people would willingly allow others to suffer, and at the same time want a better life for themselves.
I would have to think that the healthiest society is the one that looks after its members...
Perhaps that is what we are starting to see with the unrest in some areas of the US, a shakeup that will cause people to start to look after the not so fortunate.
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cbond35
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Oct 15 @ 1:19PM
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(gotta keep them thar insurance companies in business yah know)....
Y'all come back now....yah hear....
Sounds like you are implying that all Americans are rednecks and speak with a southern "drawl."
Also.......Canada funds it's healthcare system by getting a proportion of funding from the public sector and a proportion from private sources (for example, out-of-pocket payments, private insurance). Today, about 70% of total Canadian health expenditures comes from the public purse. Meaning, Canadians pay outrageous taxes on food, beer, property, general goods and homes. If there is something that can be taxed to death in Canada, it is. Why? Because it has to be that way to support their 130 billion dollar a year healthcare costs. And that number was from 2004........I'm sure it's closer to 150 billion a year by now.
I'm not saying it's any worse or better than here in the U.S either..........
http://secure.cihi.ca/cihiweb/dispPage.jsp?cw_page=AR_1282_E
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maggiemae684
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Oct 15 @ 3:11PM
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Sounds like you are implying that all Americans are rednecks and speak with a southern "drawl."
Heyull no....maggie is the ultimate redneck woman (and dayum proud of it)....y'all oughta hear my Canuckie Southern Drawal....
"Y'all come back now....yah hear".....is from the Beverly Hillbillies....cuz it makes me laugh (the show)
"Eh"....an adendum for my friends north of the 49th
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Fender
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Oct 15 @ 9:39PM
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Well I love Canada...I love medicare...I think it's awesome...I just wish I had a family doctor...Those are nearly impossible to find around here...Sitting in the ER for 10-12 hrs isn't my idea of fun times.
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Blaiserboy
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Oct 15 @ 10:21PM
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Personally, I would like to know that the little children playing on my street have access to medical care on demand, that the old pensioners next door can get the medication that they need and that young women can have their babies in the safety of a hospital.
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Borty
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Oct 16 @ 4:31AM
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Canada's healthcare is Awesome....eh...
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misschoos
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Oct 17 @ 2:55PM
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~*~
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