Mammos in Canada?

Moore's movie is attacking laissez-faire, saying that the gov't should interfere to regulate business, just like they do in small businesses. .  Example:  Canada had little problem with the financial mess that the US is in because Canada has banking regulations.  The US does not. 

Moore's movie 'Sicko' (did you watch it or just condemn what you know nothing about?) has had a huge positive effect on raising awareness in the US concerning the health crisis.  Thank goodness someone has the cojones to do that. 

I asked for specifics in your comments that Moore was lying.  You did not address that. Just threw out personal insults about him.  If you are going to slam someone at least have the courtesy to specify what the man is lying about. 

Isn't it a good thing that most people don't put much credence on how someone looks!  I would rather look and listen to someone who can put an intelligent sentence together, like Moore, rather than have to listen to what was in the White House for 8 years recently. That man had a vacancy in his eyes that was disturbing for someone who was ruling the so called free world.  His idiotic remarks will live long after he's gone. 

Europe and the Netherlands have figured out a health system that is excellent. 

The AMA is the big problem in the US and anyone working in healthcare should know that. 

Listening to Fox News all the time can warp your brain.  Suggest you try BBC and PBS for some unbiased news sources, or other independent news resources. 

Canada has a smaller population, thus less $$ for healthcare but we still manage to beat the US.  If you can find newer stats that put the US in the #1 position, do tell.  Otherwise suggest the US start looking at how France and Italy became #1 and 2, respectively.

A lot of Americans are looking longingly at Canada and many are wondering about immigrating here.  However, sadly I think most Americans will be working until they drop so they can have healthcare, including yourself. 

Thanks for being concerned about my blood pressure.  It is nice & low. Helps to live in a place where I'm not worried about my home going into foreclosure or my husband losing his job.

Bye bye

tuckertwo  PS: Sad also that some narrow minded people have divided the US into red and blue states.  Try pulling together as a nation and maybe, just maybe, you can solve these issues.

Ouch. I read each post and just have to add my opinion. First, I am from CT and although the infamous CT post has been deleted...CT..ROCKS!. That said, it seems as if there are generalizations being made about US healthcare.

The comment that one has to be "rich" to get good care is absurd. I am as middle class as they come and have received excellent care for my breast cancer treatment. When I was diagnosed I was given a PET scan right away..and was able to choose my doctors and treatment center. My husband and I pay $160 per month for our family PPO plan which allows us to see specialists without referrals. Our catestrophic cap is $5000...so when we reach that amount we pay absolutely nothing out of pocket for the rest of the year. The only reason we reaced this was due to my chemo treatments...and the cancer center waived those fees.

The reason I am posting this is because there is GOOD and BAD in both systems..and to assume that the US is only BAD and only for the rich is so unfair. Some of my support group sisters have no insurance and are being treated through state programs  until they can qualify for Medicaid. I live in Florida now and uninsured children are covered by KIDCARE for about $30 per month. Its not perfect and we do have those who go without...but its not as bad as tuckertwo suggests.

And since I am a social worker in Florida I know MANY Canadians who come here for the winter and seek medical care here that they can't get or can't wait for in Canada. One such elderly man had laser surgery here that was not offered in Canada so that he could avoid an open wound. I could go on. I am not saying that the system there is bad...I admire the fact that they look out for ALL their citizens and legal residents, that is impressive. But we have impressive aspects too, like some of the most sought after cancer treatment centers in the world, etc.

Politics aside...

Ct...dont get too excited and raise your BP. You'll note that you will hear from those who think that the Canadian system is great, and those from Canada who dont wont post because they get pounced on by other Canadians. I've given up since quite frankly Im tired of the rath, and quite frankly dont understand it. It's almost a fear of the American system...most of whom are clueless aabout it since they've never had care anywhere but in Canada !But tis ok....Ive shared these posts with a number of friends also in Canada)....who keep asking me how they're missing out on our wonderful system.  Suffice to say that as much as the Canadians you do hear from over and over and over and over again always use terminology like"most", "all" etc.....be aware that there are "many" more who feel differently but just deal ! Oh and btw, I dont live in a rural or exceptionally underserviced area....I only(sarcasm meant) waited 2 weeks for my mammo with a very large extremely fast growing lump ! we here in Canada are supposed to be satisfied with that kind of a wait because it's "free", and "everyone gets care" ....sort of like the care in your public hospitals......they get to you when they get to you !

You don't need to be citizen to have health care/surgery in Canada. You could be here on a student visa, work visa etc and any health care expenses would be covered. The Mexican's who come here to work on our farms for several months each year are given an OHIP number when they are granted a permit to work here. I believe everyone who is going to be eligible for our health care must have a physical back home to ensure they are healthy when they arrive. But these people do pay taxes, etc when they work here.

I think the bottom line is there is good and bad in all health care systems. No system is perfect and no system is going to work for everyone. I can say that when I was first diagnosed my initial fear that it was going to take months and months to have surgery because I live in Canada. There is a website that has the Ontario acceptable waiting list times for many procedures. I believe it says 84 days for breast cancer surgery. However, my waiting time was not nearly that long. My cone biopsy was done within days. My pathology report was the following day. My first surgery was exactly one month later and my second surgery was less than three weeks after my case was presented to the Tumour Board. The website shows the waiting time in my area to be 33 days and in my case, it was accurate. Here's the website link if anyone is interested http://www.health.gov.on.ca/transformation/wait_times/public/wt_public_mn.html#

This may come across as if I'm a left wing tree hugger but, I'm not but the people who come here to work, do pay taxes and they do contribute to our economy. However, I'm not sure what the process is if excessive medical care is required while they are in Canada. I know they have OHIP cards but I also know they carry out of country insurance. So there must be some limitations otherwise why would they need to carry out of country insurance coverage? I know when I live in the US 5 months a year, I have out of country insurance. If I became very ill, the insurance company would pay to send me back to Canada for treatment. I wonder if OHIP has different grades of cards and perhaps their OHIP cards have restrictions if something is not considered an emergency. So if a lump was found, I imagine they would have to go home. Just a PS . . . did you know that if we moved to Mexico, we could buy into their health care program? I know many Canadians decide to move to Mexico to retire since they can't afford to retire in Canada. And being able to buy into their government funded health care program makes it possible for them to move to Mexico.

No Mantra there is no diffrent grades of OHIP.

Wow Erika! What a blanket statement. I cannot believe that you just bypassed my post which said I waited almost 2 months for cancer surgery.I am not delusional, it really did happen! There are wait times and they are posted, I am not sure how you can dispute this realistically?

As for medications, I have no insurance.I am not understanding who the ghost person paying for these is? Can you send them my way? Currently I am paying OUT OF POCKET for asthma drugs, depression drugs and stomach drugs. I do not have any sort of drug plan however, I am not in poverty either, which means I do not qualify for any kind of goverment assistance.The total bill is almost 800.00 a month, which I put on my credit card.

Anyway, we see what we want to see right? BTW my friend had the same amount of wait time for her surgery.

Yes, Trillium is the Ontario drug benefit program, and in fact everyone in Ontario qualifies for Trillium.  The program is open to anyone who applies.  The way it works is that there is a deductable based on your income - approx. 4%, I believe.  So if you earn $50,000, your deductible would be around $2000. The deductible is applied quarterly, in other words, it would be $500 per quarter.  So if your out-of-pocket costs for drugs, after all other payments you receive (supplemental insurance, for example), is more than $500 per quarter, then Trillium would kick in and cover the remainder of your drug costs (for qualifying drugs, which I believe is anything on the Ontario formulary).  If you earn $250,000, your deductible would be $10,000, or $2,500 per quarter.  So even someone with a high income, if they have very high drug costs and no other insurance coverage of these costs, could benefit from Trillium

Here is some high level information about the program:  http://www.health.gov.on.ca/english/public/pub/drugs/trillium.html

And this PDF file explains the deductibles and how the program works:  http://www.forms.ssb.gov.on.ca/mbs/ssb/forms/ssbforms.nsf/GetAttachDocs/014-S46850E-87~15/$File/TrilliumBookE.pdf

Dear Beesie; Your posts are great, factual & educational. And a lot of the times, just down right enlightening. All joking aside, I very much appreciate all the thought & effort, you put into each of your replies. I have greatly benefited from reading your posts. It didn't matter to whom, or what, you were directing them at. Thank you

Dear Erika Saskatchewan is beautiful.  But -60 C in the winter!!! Yuck

In Ontario, our health is paid for and assessed when we do our income taxes. I think, think being the operative word, that the maximum we pay is $300 a year. We also have supplemental insurance through DH employer. Some of it is paid by us and the employer pays the greater share. It covers us for 90% drugs and dental, $1,500 a year for physio, $1500 a year for medically necessary massages, 30 days out of country insurance, knee etc braces, some eyecare (not nearly enough!!), and lots of other stuff. If we didn't have it, I would look into Trillium. I never heard of it before.

-60 C windchill??!! Yikes!! Normally I don't live here in the winter but this year I may get to experience a real Ontario winter.

Although we have universal healthcare across Canada, healthcare is run by the provinces and that leads to differences in what is covered in one province vs. another, differences in wait-times in one province vs. another, even differences in treatment in one province vs. another.  I wish that we had a set of minimum national standards but unfortunately we don't. Maybe one day. I also find it interesting that in the U.S. some are proposing that healthcare be left to the States, and I sort of chuckle at that and think "been there, done that and now we wish we had a national program".

Of course, separate from the provincial differences, there are also differences in treatment standards and what is available in terms of care in large urban areas vs. smaller towns or rural Canada, there are differences across every hospital in terms of how they treat patients and implement provincial programs, etc..  So everyone should be aware that our experiences with treatment are simply our experiences - unique to ourselves.  Just because I was delighted with my treatment doesn't mean that everyone else will be.  Everyone's experience is unique and everyone's experience is valid.  We should always remember that.

Having said that, I disagree that there are "just as many bad stories as good ones".  The fact is that all the surveys that have been done on Canadian healthcare suggest that there are more good stories than bad ones.  The majority of Canadians rate Canadian healthcare as being good (or they are "satisfied" or "very satisfied").  Few rate it as being perfect - and I don't think anyone here would disagree on that point - but more rate it favourably than unfavourably.  The numbers vary depending on the study - I've seen some studies that show only a small majority as being happy (about 57%) while other studies have a much larger majority (80%+) voicing satisfaction with the system.  So if we look at the comments from the women on this board, I think we are pretty representative of Canadian opinion as a whole.  Most of us are generally happy about our experiences with Canadian healthcare, but some of us are not. 

One study that I found really interesting was a 2009 Decima poll that showed that 82% of Canadian prefer our system to the U.S. system (http://www.harrisdecima.ca/sites/default/files/releases/071009E.pdf); a 2008 study for CTV and the Globe & Mail found that 91% of Canadians prefer our system. That seems to suggest that even though many Canadians recognize the problems with our healthcare system, we still think that a government-funded single payer universal healthcare is the best.

p.s.  QueenK and ymb, thank you!  QueenK, if you decide to apply for Trillium, I will be really interested to find out how easy - or difficult - the application process is and how long it takes before everything is processed. 

Interesting.  What are they specific too?  Wait times seem to be by province.  Treatment guidelines seem to vary by province (though not a lot).  What is covered and what is not from a cost standpoint definitely varies by province.  What are the national standards for?  I'm not questioning your statement, just genuinely interested to know.

Man would that be the life! I am not able to go back to work full time yet so I don't have any extra health benefits.BOO.I would love to get massages and physio for my nerve damage and lymphadema, unfortunatly I don't have the supplemental insurance.I have now been on the list for 8 months for OHIP physio, and it looks a little bit bleak.I could buy insurance but the cost is prohibitive for us (looked into blue cross etc).

.I worked in healthcare with a large majority of new canadians, most without a good grasp of the english language. I would mostly hear stories from them and my elderly clients about wait times etc.Actually a full 6 out of 10 of my clients did not have family doctors at the time I was assisting them.

Above I am sure there is some kind of act, but as you will notice the wait times are not the same, province to province and town to town.

Babyface! Congrats on the 5 year mark, you must be very proud.Don't bother with posters who pester, its so not worth it.

Queen, I was reading the booklet left by the nurse from CCAC (Community Care Access Centre) and noticed they seem to provide physio and occupational therapy. I can give you the local phone number and perhaps you could see if they provide this service in your area. The phone numbers in the booklet are: 1-888-721-2222 or 705-721-8010