On the lighter side...

gtodrive · Guru

On the lighter side...

Canadian Poncho · A Poncho Legend!

With all the health issues my family has had in the past, we'd be living on the street if we didnt have govt health care. I couldnt imagine not having it. I've had 3 surgeries all covered by our gov't health. I laugh at what I hear the Repubs say about gov't health care. The govt cant "pull the plug on grandma" etc. You'd be crazy not to vote for it in my opinion. Ask 427Carl about his recent health experience with his wife. I bet that's a $500000 procedure his wife just had.

Todd

-- Edited by 69Laurentian on Friday 19th of March 2010 10:58:19 AM

seventy2plus2 · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I think Obama has the right concept, however it seems whoever wrote up the plan went a little wild. Another buddy of mine in Wisconson sent me a clip where all the questionable entries are mentioned.

The USA and all their freedom ra ra, etc is always walking a fine line between democracy and socialism, obviously staying away from socialism. The minute they hear anything being run by the government it's socialism. I always find it sad when I hear of someone in the US not being able to get their broken arm set properly because they have no insurance and can't the hospital visit.

Last fall while doing my basement reno, I shot a 3" framing nail through the tip of my left forefinger, and into my middle finger. It was basically a flesh wound, but needed a ton of freezing and 3 stitches to close it up, as well as a tetanus shot. My Alberta Health Care covered the whole thing (of which the premiums are covered by the Government of Alberta) and I walked out, with a free tube of polysporin in hand. With no government insurance, that would have been a $400 visit.

I admit nothing is perfect, but the present US healthcare system basically doesn't work, and reform is needed.

gtodrive · Guru

seventy2plus2 wrote:

I think Obama has the right concept, however it seems whoever wrote up the plan went a little wild. Another buddy of mine in Wisconson sent me a clip where all the questionable entries are mentioned.

I agree the system needs reform, but like your friend in Wisconsin informed you....there is a lot of crazy stuff in that 2,000 + page bill!

RDubya · Poncho Master!

I'm sure glad of the healthcare system we have. The other night we took our baby boy to the emergency room, turns out he has an ear infection. It may have been 3 hrs, but he got the diagnosis and didn't cost us anything for their services. Having kids, and also a parent who is in hospital right now i'm definately happy our costs are covered. I really hope we don't get to far down a two tier road.

427carl · A Poncho Legend!

69Laurentian wrote:

With all the health issues my family has had in the past, we'd be living on the street if we didnt have govt health care. I couldnt imagine not having it. I've had 3 surgeries all covered by our gov't health. I laugh at what I hear the Repubs say about gov't health care. The govt cant "pull the plug on grandma" etc. You'd be crazy not to vote for it in my opinion. Ask 427Carl about his recent health experience with his wife. I bet that's a $500000 procedure his wife just had.

Todd

Todd is smart! Todd is correct! The back fusion is $48.000.00 U.S We had 4 ambulance trips and 21 days in hospital in semi private..and enough morphine to sink a ship! Our costs were $200.00 for TV and phone and 18.00 for parking We are blessed indeed We do have some waste and over paid adminstrators, but over all it works great We "baby Boomers" are a little hard on the system right now, but we will be gone soon lol wink

r66sd · Addicted!

My opinion is that health care costs in the USA appear to be extremely high, and I don't see how the average family can afford the premiums charged by the private insurers, let alone the high cost of your prescription drugs etc. I think a health care system where everyone is covered will be good for your country, just not sure how your going to be able to swing it with the economy in such bad shape now , and already running massive deficits. Good luck from someone who really appreciates what we have here in Canada!!

73SC · A Poncho Legend!

Taking care of your people is not Socialism, it's the morally responsible thing to do.

67SD396 · Poncho Master!

73SC wrote:

Taking care of your people is not Socialism, it's the morally responsible thing to do.

Have to agree with that!

Very glad to be a Canadian and to know we that we have this part of life figured out. I wasn't around when our "universal healthcare" was introduced but I have heard plenty about it. We, as Canadians, didn't just accept this concept either. It was debated quite heavily and many people were against it. I am definately not socialist but I do think government funded healthcare is for the good of a society. I hope the United States gets this figured out because it is for their own well being. I can hardly stand the thought of another human being getting treated better because he or she has a fatter wallet. That is something, as a society, the American people should be ashamed of

.

gtodrive · Guru

r66sd wrote:

My opinion is that health care costs in the USA appear to be extremely high, and I don't see how the average family can afford the premiums charged by the private insurers, let alone the high cost of your prescription drugs etc.
I have one of the better health care deals with the job I have. My health care package cost the company $1200/month and I pay $150 with a $20 co-pay when I see the doctor. Coverage for anything major is 100%. It is not uncommon for families to pay $800/month and up for coverage. I'm a diabetic, so I have my share of prescriptions which cost either $20 or $30 a piece depending on whether they are generic or not. So, my average monthly outlay is about $300. My problem with the current bill that they are trying to ram through is all the CRAP that is in it. And why do you need to have 2,000 pages (that most have not read) unless you are trying to hide something! I'm hoping that whatever happens it turns out to be best for the country and I agree...morally we need to take care of our own.

-- Edited by gtodrive on Friday 19th of March 2010 08:10:09 PM

cdnpont · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I'm with Todd and Carl.

My father has terminal lung cancer, they say has at best 3 months to live. No treatment possible he has chosen to stay at home as long as possible. My mother and sister and myself tried our best to take care of him but he became really sick, totaly out of whack. So with one phone call an ambulance arrived took him down to the hospital. He spent the next four days all hooked up, and remarkably they were able to get him back on track. He's home again and holding his own. A healthcare worker comes every day. A nutritionist came and planned his meals. The Carpenter hospice is lining up a spot for him. Total cost for the hospital stay...$30 for parking and $10 for his TV. No charge for the in home care. His retirement health plan covers the drugs.

But on a negative note, it was not for the asking of questions by my wife who is in health care, they would have sent him home way too early. It's obvious the resources are stretched pretty thin, and it shows on the workers.

I can only imagine the stress that would be placed on a family if they were to add the worry of money on top of all the things going on during a crisis. Without a doubt, we're a fairly blessed lot here.

ak 67sd · Poncho Master!

Now, i do support our socialist way of life in canada... our model has its problems, in particular the fact that it is not as patient focused like the US model (we do have something to learn there!). However the insurance heavy model in the US is also problemattic, in the sense that those that are over insured do not necessarily get the best care either, it becomes more about milking the insurance company.

The concept of free healthcare in Canada is a bit comical. I spend about $12000/yr in my income taxes on healthcare (i'm in Canada!!). The chances of me ever using the sytem to that full extent (knock on wood!) is questionable. If i put $12k/yr away and used the money in a private system I would probably have better access to service than I would in a public model. I would not have to wait 4-6 months to access an MRI for example, nor would I wait 8 hours in an ER!

Healthcare costs are generally not anymore money in the US than Canada (I would suspect generally lower) we just don't get a bill for ours, it's averaged out over the tax paying population. I don't have that raw data at home to compare procedure costs across both sides of the border, out of interest maybe I'll source some out at work next week... I do know that our facility costs are probably 50-75% higher than the US and our patient comfort is lower overall due to our older infrastructure.

At the same time, what really saddend me last time i was in a US hospital (in a Neonatal Intensive Care) is NOT seeing families!! Women/spouses do not get maternity leave in the US like we do, and most find themselves back at work shortly after...

I would also be interested to see if the US bill included performance measures or incentives for treatments by healthcare professionals that we are sorely lacking in Canada... it's very Canadian to not penalize poor performance...or even talk about it.

ak

87 player bird · Poncho Master!

It should not be to tough to figure it out. Sick families are non productive families. The states need to overhaul the health care system for sure. Ours aint perfect, but I am glad that we have it. Follow our lead and treat people on the need not the dollar. Just my opinion though. We all know my opinions piss off some people sometimes.

67BBSD · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

ak 67sd wrote:

Now, i do support our socialist way of life in canada... our model has its problems, in particular the fact that it is not as patient focused like the US model (we do have something to learn there!). However the insurance heavy model in the US is also problemattic, in the sense that those that are over insured do not necessarily get the best care either, it becomes more about milking the insurance company.

The concept of free healthcare in Canada is a bit comical. I spend about $12000/yr in my income taxes on healthcare (i'm in Canada!!). The chances of me ever using the sytem to that full extent (knock on wood!) is questionable. If i put $12k/yr away and used the money in a private system I would probably have better access to service than I would in a public model. I would not have to wait 4-6 months to access an MRI for example, nor would I wait 8 hours in an ER!

Healthcare costs are generally not anymore money in the US than Canada (I would suspect generally lower) we just don't get a bill for ours, it's averaged out over the tax paying population. I don't have that raw data at home to compare procedure costs across both sides of the border, out of interest maybe I'll source some out at work next week... I do know that our facility costs are probably 50-75% higher than the US and our patient comfort is lower overall due to our older infrastructure.

At the same time, what really saddend me last time i was in a US hospital (in a Neonatal Intensive Care) is NOT seeing families!! Women/spouses do not get maternity leave in the US like we do, and most find themselves back at work shortly after...

I would also be interested to see if the US bill included performance measures or incentives for treatments by healthcare professionals that we are sorely lacking in Canada... it's very Canadian to not penalize poor performance...or even talk about it.

ak

very interesting point of view-very correct

4SPEED427 · A Poncho Legend!

In a nutshell, we have it good. Overtaxed, yes. But it's all worth it to have no money worries for health care.

When our son was 5, he lost the end of his right index finger at the knuckle. I can't imagine what that alone would have cost a family struggling with a large mortgage at that time. Well, not struggling maybe but not ready to pay out 10's of thousands in medical bills.

I have had numerous medical appointments this winter. Not a penny spent other than my tax dollars.

67BBSD · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

Carl-I agree that its great to have the health care system available that we do-but its not FREE-I have friends in OHIO paying $1000/month for health insurance (thats a lot) but I think they would be just a wee bit bent out of shape if they paid 13 % tax on everything they purchase.

U.S. needs an overhaul

rabbit64cs · Canadian Poncho Superstar!

I'm with AK , it's not the government that takes care of Canadians, it's the taxpayers of Canada taking care of their fellow Canadians. It's not free, but it works , and I'm ok with it.