Canada

8 Universal Health Care System FAQs #1

Does Canada have socialized medicine?
No. The Canadian system is a "single payer" system. Services are mostly provided by private entities. (There are many public hospitals.) The government is simply the primary purchaser of medical services in Canada. (Specifically, the government provides universal health care insurance to all Canadians.)

Are wait times in Canada as bad as we have heard?
Claims of horrendous wait times has been exaggerated by those opposed to Universal Health Care. While there are longer waits for elective surgeries (such as a hip replacement) than in the US, studies show that waits in the US are not significantly better. Additionally, there is less competition for these types of services in the US since there are many people without health insurance. (There are, of course, no wait times for emergency surgeries.)

Considering the large role played by the government in the Canadian system, does it cost more than the US health care system?
Actually, Canada's single payer system has worked very well at holding down prices thanks to the governments ability to bargain for good prices. (One example of this is that prescription prices are around 60% lower than in the US, which explains the billion dollar plus industry of Americans importing drugs from Canada.) The single payer system also spends less on administrative costs. In 2006, Canada spent around 10% of GDP on health care while the US spent 15.3% of GDP.

Are all health care costs covered by the government in Canada?
No. The government does not cover optometry, dentistry or prescription drugs. Most Canadians have supplemental insurance, usually provided by their employers, to cover these expenses. Additionally, the Canadian government uses price controls to keep down the costs of prescription drugs.

Are drugs from Canada any less safe than those for sale in the US?
No. Most pharmaceuticals sold in Canada were manufactured in the same factories as those sold in the US. This is little more than an attempt by drug companies and their conservative supporters to scare Americans into paying the full US price for their drugs.

Sources (Ezra Klein, MedHunters, Wikipedia)