Why do Canadians have free health services?

Question

How is it possible? How come the U.S. doesn't have it that way?

Answer 1

You wouldn't want to have to pay the taxes that Canadians do in order to cover the costs of their "free" health care.

Have a nice day!

Answer 2

We pay higher taxes to have free health care.

And we don't pay 50 or 70% in taxes.....contrary to some answerers.

If you make about $30,000.00 per year you pay 15.25 % in federal income tax.

The provincial income tax varies from province to province, Manitoba is about 10%.

You can claim numerous deductions (especially if you have children, if you don't $30000.00 is more than enough to survive)

The Federal and Provincial levels of government contribute to the costs of health care (amoung many other things.)

And the waits are not as long as people say. There are waits for elective surgeries, but not if you need cancer treatment or heart surgery.

I had a relatively harmless cyst growing on my ovary. After the unknown lump was found, I was advised I would have to wait several months for an ultra sound. I told my doctor that the pain was increasing to the point where I was missing work and school. I was promptly given a date for a cat scan instead. Within a week of the cat scan I had an appointment with a surgeon and two weeks later had the surgery. Doesn't sound all that bad for a non-life threatening problem, does it?

Better than waiting till you can save up the money to even go to the GP to complain about a possible problem!! Or having a heart attack, being unable to work, being weak and being hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt at the end of it and paying thousands for medications that cost a few hundred here.

The only down side to not having to pay is that there are long waits in emergency rooms for non-emergent situations since people think nothing about going to the ER for sniffles when they don't have to pay. Then again, this does not affect you if you are walking in with a gun shot, only if you are also there for the sniffles.

Edit to Robbie....ahhh thank you....an informed opinion...notice we both got thumbs down....lol!

Answer 3

It's not free, you pay for it through taxes. What everyone misses is that you're exchanging your health insurance premium for the tax.

Every study that has been done in the US has shown that both individuals and businesses would save significant money paying the tax rather than the premium.

Yesterday, the head of the Business Roundtable, an association of the major corporations in America, held a press conference about the need for universal health care.

All these peolpe complain about things they nothing about, like long waits. Medicare is the exact type of system that could be instituted in America. There is no wait in Medicare

Answer 4

Well, I'll jump on the bandwagon-- Its NOT free. Candians pay quite a bit in taxes of all sorts-- income, VAT, sales, etc. Pretty hefty taxes too.

Waiting for services is also a problem. There are not enough facilities or human resources to do it.

Many other countries who have socialized health care have the same problems -- high taxes, waiting, access to special care.

Universal health care is not the solution for the US.

But some mechanism for extending reasonably priced health care insurance to those who don't have it IS something the US needs.

Answer 5

Canada and many other places, in fact the state of Alaska is one, have universal health care programs. There are also private doctors and clinics for those that want them and are able to afford them. The costs are paid through taxes and generally well managed. In the U.S. every member of congress, all of the Supreme Court Justices and the President, Vice President and his cabinet have government subsidised health care. Most of the fifty states have some form of subsidized heath care for the poor.
The major opponent of universal health care in the U.S. is the health insurance industry. The industry would not have a market if health care were universally available. If some sort of national health care program were developed it would involve costs that would be paid through taxes, but health insurance is currently one of the most costly portions of our national economy.

Answer 6

Relative in Montreal was offered a MAY 07 visit for a specialist. That was in DEC 06

OR

they could pay $ 200 US dollars and see one the following week.
As much as it sounds good on paper I would rather pay than be at the mercy of the free waiting list.

Answer 7

The United States is the only developed nation in the world that does not have government sponsored health insurance. We also have the highest infant mortality rate of developed nations.
On the plus side, we have the most success with research into treatments, but I think it's time to focus on getting those treatments distributed more equitably. Unfortunately, insurance companies have powerful lobbyists.

Answer 8

Wow!! A lot of uninformed opinions here.
I'm Canadian.

We pay maybe slightly more in taxes. I'm a high earner, its around 35% for the first $50,000 and is 40% of anything over $50K.

But everybody is covered. The homeless people on the streets, seniors with no income. Poor people, single mothers.

You know what, I may pay slightly more in taxes, but really, really like that everybody is covered.

So would I like to pay lower taxes and abandon our poor people and seniors. Noooo.

No country is perfect and no medical system is perfect.

There is talk about wait times. It depends on severity of illness in most cases.

I think poor people would rather be on a wait list than not be able to get on a wait list.

You guys are wonderfull and all and we love you. But don't knock our medical system. It covers everybody.

Match that!!

Answer 9

Because the Canadians cough up like 70% of their income in taxes.

Answer 10

Because Canada has a caring, less selfish society. In the US if you don't have the cash they are quite happy to leave you to die. I hear that US paramedics are trained to check for cash and credit cards before they'll do anything else. And then they go on about being Christians - what a joke!

Made some of that up but is basically true I'm sure even though I've never been near the place.

Answer 11

There is a financial pool for the people. But they wait in line to have necessary medical treatment. It goes by order of need.