We are so lucky

It just a mess. I am the one in the house with excellent health insurance, but I am also the one who got sick. So it makes my fight even more challenging. Gotta stay ticking for the family.

I am horrified every time I read posts about not being able to afford care or see it on t.v. Dr. Oz had a woman on his show who had come to a special clinic set up for the poor and uninsured. Her tumour was the size of a grapefruit and had burst through her skin. It was so upsetting I starting sobbing. He got her help at a cancer centre and, unbelievably, she had no mets! Just this giant tumour. It is so confusing to me that there are Americans who don't want Obama to succeed at his promise of universal healthcare. Who are these people and what is wrong with them? I couldn't live in a society where the rich believe only they have a right to live. We ARE so very lucky to live here in Canada and my family and I say that each week. The Alberta Government pays for my Zoladex and Tamoxifen, too. I have a plan through work and one I pay for, and the one through my office pays for everything - my Clasteon, oxy and everything else. I am grateful that I will get to live as long as possible because I live in Canada. If I lived in the US, my parents and I would have to sell everything and we would likely run out of money for any further treatment I might need.

It is so sad to see women having the extra burden of worry regarding insurance etc. Isn't the dx enough to worry about.

We are very fortunate to have coverage for all citizens. I am so grateful that I received the same treatment as anyone else would get regardless of socio/economic status.

I am in Alberta and I didn't have to pay for tamox or Aromasin.

The Health care costs in the US are higher per GDP than in Canada and many other countries and yet so many of their citizens have no coverage. Their whole medical system seems so complicated and so unfair

I agree with everyone here.  It is totally incomprehensible to me that some Americans are actively fighting against something that helps people.  I somehow doubt that opponents of Obama's health plan have ever been through the fear and pain of breast cancer.  How could anyone go through that and have to worry about money and insurance at the same time?

I know this isn't a political board, but I do hope, for the sake of Americans with breast cancer and other serious diseases, that Obama manages to stay in and get the American health care system up to the standards of what we consider to be civilized.

Bravo to all of the comments above.  My grandparents and parents were Canadian, ergo I have many cousins and 2 uncles that are still Canadian and I hear how well the Canadian healthcare system works, despite the rightwing propoganda that we sometimes hear in the USA about (cough) "socialist medicine."

The thing about "Obamacare,"  the system that is being currently challenged in the SCOTUS, the model for this plan was originally the brainchild of a rightwing think tank. It was adopted in Massachusetts by the would be Republican Presidential Candidate.   The challenge to Obamacare from the Right is more about the "Obama" part of the Act.  In no way shape or form do they want this POTUS to succeed.   Other than that, via the dumbing down of America, most don't even understand what the Affordable Care Act is even about.  Admittedly, I don't even know all of the parts.  Some just know, if Obama wants it, then they have to be against it.

They'll argue that there is already medical care for all via various Medicaid programs without acknowledging that not all doctors or facilities will take such patients or in rural areas, that might require relocating at great expense (those people don't have money, duh!) to be near a teaching hospital.   Those people just choose no care.  On the other extreme, I've seen the young carpenter who hurts his knee while working for cash under the table who signs up for Medical (in California) to get his knee operated on...never really paying into any pool over a period of time and the same young man will say he should not be mandated to pay for insurance in case he does get hurt.   "That's wrong for the government to force the 'individual mandate.'"

Nonesensical. 

It's pretty clear to many of us inside the US as well, it's just that there isn't anything we can do about it.  The US has become a corporatocracy.  The money from corporations has too much influence in Washington.   Companies, and some doctors, don't want any kind of government regulation that will impact their profits, and they are buying a lot of influence in Republican circles.  It's also true that the Republicans are philosophically against "too much assistance", as they believe it squelches motivation.  What makes many of us angry is that our congressmen and women have wonderful government-paid health insurance.  But the rest of us - forgetaboutit.  

Honestly I think most Americans want some kind of universal healtcare, or at the very least, want many of the provisions that are in the Affordable Care Act.  I also think Obama will win this next election,  Many of us think he is doing a decent job, but he is fighting a party that wants him to lose  no matter what.   He has a lot more support than the press credits him with, imo.

 Unfortunately, our Supreme Court is more political than it has been in my lifetime.  The majority are Republicans, so it's pretty clear to me that the AC Act will be found unconstitutional.  This is the same court that made sure Bush was "elected' before all the votes were counted.

Lindasa, that is good to know.  If i will be put on hormonal therapy I will ask about it at TOM BAKER.  I always buy my TAMOXIFEN at shoppers.....

Yes, we are so lucky - I had my "brush" with the U.S. 'lack of healthcare' system - my DH was very sick for the two years before he passed away (it coincided with my diagnosis and treatment) - he was working as a "consultant" (read, he couldn't get a staff job because of his age "60's") but was able to get very expensive insurance which didn't cover everything - when he passed the bills were astronomical (the last one I saw was for $700,000 for surgery and hospital stay - ICU for 3 weeks then two more weeks in regular room) - to top it all off the insurance company tried to evade paying for my treatment by stamping it "pre existing condition" - found out really quickly they try to do that to all bc first timer's - one very angry call from my dh stopped that in its tracks and they paid for most of my treatment - a private foundation picked up the extra costs - they were never named but through the financial coordinator at the clinic I was able to thank them.

I will never understand the hostility that has led the U.S. down this path.......

Chele, our "other", private insurance covers out of pocket expenses such as prescription drugs, dental, glasses, chiropractor, massage therapies etc.

Not everyone has it, its mostly part of employee benefits. There are also programs in place to help offset such cost for people who don't have private health plan but have exceptionaly high expenses for dental or prescription drugs.

chele -- Just wanted to add that folks 65 and over in Ontario have their drugs paid for under our version of Medicare.  But some continue to carry private, supplemental health insurance for dental, optical, chiro, physio, massage etc. as mks16 has indicated.