Comment by poncho_romero
2 days ago
What about them? The Canadian healthcare system has better outcomes than the American healthcare system in several areas. Most simply, Canadians live longer.
2 days ago
What about them? The Canadian healthcare system has better outcomes than the American healthcare system in several areas. Most simply, Canadians live longer.
I'm 29 and when I was a kid, getting a family doctor used to be an easy task and if you needed to see your doctor you could get in that day. Now all the doctors are so overworked, they're fleeing to America where they can get paid a reasonable wage for a reasonable amount of work. If you can even get a family doctor, if you want to book an appointment, they'll ask you which day you'd like 4 months from now.
My mom's been dealing with an issue with her lungs for the better part of the past year, and trying to get help through any of the intended methods just gets her put on a 2 year wait list. At this point her plan is to pay tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket to see a specialist in America.
The current generation of elderly Canadians now having lived a long life spent most of that life in an entirely different Canada. My generation is going to die on a waitlist.
6 month median wait time for treatment, as in the case now in Canada, is not something I'd trade the American system for.
I also feared this, until I read that some US citizens avoid going to the doctor until it is unbearable. Take this examples: here in Spain you go to the doctor because you think that mole is slightly bigger than past year. They point you to the dermatologist in january 2027, a terrible 6 months waiting. In the US a lot of people thinks "hey, doesn't look that bad, and it could cost me $5,000". Five years pass, and now the mole is five times bigger, it bleeds and... well, it is a full blown melanoma: you get to the dermatologist 1 day after consultation, yet is too late.
The difference is wealthy people get the care immediately in the US while the poor can go to the ED and get a bankruptcy.
Can you reconcile this with skyrocketing Canada to US medical tourism?
Those with money and those without.
Gap between Canada and US life expectancy overall: ~3 years in favor of Canada
Gap between Canada and US life expectancy for top 10% economically: ~0
Life expectancy is a function of demographics, which averages ignore.
Income is also an assertion not supported by data. For simple procedures such as a knee or hip replacement, many people earning under $80K CAD opt for US treatment.
Likely because Canada has extremely bad waitlists which are continuing to deteriorate. That coupled with a lack of specialist medical options and lesser quality.
In Canada, a woman with breast cancer could be waiting 2 months to even start treatment. In the US, you'll be starting next week.
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