Ontario health minister defends health system from U.S. critics

[marmar]

via the Toronto Star:



Caplan defends health system from U.S. critics
Jul 29, 2009 07:59 PM

Romina Maurino
THE CANADIAN PRESS


Ontario's health minister is defending the province's track record as the government fights back in the case of a Hamilton-area woman whose story has become a source of ammunition for critics of U.S. health care reforms.

Responding to criticism that some Canadians are forced to travel south to get medical treatment they can't afford to wait for, Ontario Health Minister David Caplan said Wednesday the province is proud of its publicly funded system and is working to increase access to care and lower wait times.

"We have a system that provides universal coverage – the flaw in the American system is that first they check the size of your wallet, not the size of your need," said Caplan.

"Politics is not something which is really helping patients in Canada or the United States, but it seems like this is the culture in the United States."

His comments come as the Attorney General's office filed a defence against a claim made by Shona Holmes – a Waterdown, Ont., woman who says that if she relied on her government for medical treatment, she'd be dead. ...........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thestar.com/news/ontario/article/673805

[saltpoint]

1. Very interesting stuff. Good post.

:thumbsup:

[bobbolink]

2. Wasn't there another Canadian official who came to the US to speak back about criticisms?

Thanks for posting this!

[Spazito]

4. Yes, it was Jack Layton, leader of the NDP party....

he was scheduled relatively recently to speak to to Congress members, etc.

[bobbolink]

5. Yes, that's him! I heard him on Air America. Thanks!

[stuball111]

6. Jack Layton, the leader of the NDP was on the Ed Show

The problem is that Ontario is governed by conservatives, and the PM is also a conservative, not in the usual sense of the word though! These guys are in the pocket of big business all the way! And their strategy is to underfund and fuck up health care so that there IS waiting lines and lack of service! That way they figure that people will get so fed up and disgusted that they will go for an American style of insurance, and BOOM for profit health care. This has been going on since Myron Baloney (Brian Mulroney, the Reagan era Prime Minister of Canada) announced that health care was "broken" back in the 80's. These bastards have been chipping away at it ever since. It took nearly 30 years to bring Universal Health Care into Canada, and Tommy Douglas knew that he couldn't do it over night, so he brought it in in stages. The Conservatives are dismantling it the same way. If they pulled the plug on it instantly, they would be lynched and they get exactly ZERO votes in the next election, and be a party no more. But if they do it slowly over time, people don't notice it as much. That bitch Holmes did NOT have a life threatening problem, and was put in line accordingly, but she figured, being a fucking conservative, that she'd go to the US and get it done, pay for it, and then try to sue the government to get her money back. She lied about it being a brain tumor, it was a cyst, and not even in her stupid brain! The Mayo clinic had TWO doctors FROM CANADA working on her, and of course, they saw the stupid bitch as a bunch more money, so they gave her a line and sucked her in to doing it there! She will loose her case there in Canada, especially after the shit she caused, and I'll bet the farm on it. People like her are the most vile and evil crap of the entire human race, to put down the system that keeps millions healthy and happy and living longer than here in the US. If she would have waited, she would have gotten the operation for free, but she screwed herself big time by trying to jump the gun, and even then, if she would have gone through the right channels up there, she could have gotten the operation in the US and STILL have it paid for by the Canadian system!

[bobbolink]

8. Thank you so much for all the good information!

This is what I have figured.... certainly it's a predictable part of the pattern, eh?

To hell with people dying... as long as we get RICH.

I'm saving this.. GREAT info!

What we need is a good website for collecting these Canadian stories all in one place.

[Spazito]

9. Here is thread where information was collected on Shona Holmes, it has some

good info in it:


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=6102187

[bobbolink]

10. Thank you again....I have it bookmarked!

:hi:

[tuvor]

3. It would be nice if our prime minister would do the same.

I guess he's too busy working on another Ignatieff attack ad.

[stuball111]

7. Harper... a Bush lackie

When are you gonna get with it and dump those damn conservatives up there? I hope Ignatieff gets in next, he's got the Trudeau spirit.