[caya]

I am so thankful that, as a Canadian, we have universal health care. When you are seriously ill, the last thing I think you would want to do would be filling out forms, fighting for scans, tests that have not been approved etc. When my daughter was born in 1986, after a total normal pregnancy, I had a fever while in labour and she was put into the NICU for 10 days as a precaution for possible meningitis. Of course we were worried sick about her, but I could focus on her health, and did not have to think about anything else. Can you imagine if we had no health coverage? I shudder to think of that thought.
It was the same with my BC diagnosis last fall. My GP referred me to an oncologist - and I got to choose anyone I wanted to go to in the city of Toronto - and I saw both him and the breast surgeon within a week. The breast surgeon was assigned to me from a group of about 6 doctors. All my tests and scans pre-surgery were ordered by my onc. in a timely manner, at world class hospitals. I also had an appointment with a plastic surgeon to discuss reconstruction - again, the PS I chose, not who was part of a certain HMO or "group", as ordered by an insurance company. Everything was covered with my provincial health card, just a swipe at each visit and that was it.
I am not saying our system is perfect - it isn't, nothing is. But everyone is equal here with regards to their health, and I believe this is morally the right way. Yes, I pay high taxes, but I feel it is worth it. As in France, health care in Canada is a right, not a privilege.
Yes, you will hear occasional stories in the US about long wait times for certain surgeries etc. here and that is sometimes true. But these are the exceptions, not the rule. I truly believe that some US insurance companies exaggerate these issues to scare the US population into believing it would be chaos if a universal health care system was created in the States, and that care would evaporate. Ask the millions of Americans who have no health care - and I am not talking about the ones that can afford it but balk at paying. Or the ones who just lost their jobs and are worried sick about losing their health coverage - it's bad enough to lose your job. Or the ones who stay in horrible jobs because they cannot afford to lose their insurance- I would hate to feel trapped that way.
Again, it is not perfect up here, but in general, I'd much rather have it this way. In fact, Herceptin was cleared for use in early stagers up here earlier than in Nov. 2006 as in the States.

Just MHO - Canadian HO, that is.

all the best,
caya