1,000's Flee Canada For Healthcare

[Mike]

Report: Thousands fled Canada for health care in 2011
7/11/12 | Michael Bastasch



A Canadian study released Wednesday found that many provinces in our neighbor to the North have seen patients fleeing the country and opting for medical treatment in the United States.

The nonpartisan Fraser Institute reported that 46,159 Canadians sought medical treatment outside of Canada in 2011, as wait times increased 104 percent — more than double — compared with statistics from 1993.

Specialist physicians surveyed across 12 specialties and 10 provinces reported an average total wait time of 19 weeks between the time a general practitioner refers a patient and the time a specialist provides elective treatment — the longest they have ever recorded.

In 2011, Canadians enrolled in the nation's government-dominated health service waited long periods of time for an estimated 941,321 procedures. As many as 2.8 percent of Canadians were waiting for treatment at any given time, according to the Institute.

"In some cases, these patients needed to leave Canada due to a lack of available resources or a lack of appropriate procedure/technology," according to the Institute. "In others, their departure will have been driven by a desire to return more quickly to their lives, to seek out superior quality care, or perhaps to save their own lives or avoid the risk of disability."

Increases in the number of patients leaving Canada for treatment were seen in seven of the ten Canadian provinces: British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador.

"Some of these patients will have been sent out of country by the public health care system due to a lack of available resources or the fact that some procedures or equipment are not provided in their home jurisdiction," the report concluded.

 

[Kato]

FYI, The Fraser Institute is not exactly non-partisan.

One thing left out of the story is that sure, sometimes Canadian health professionals will send patients to the U.S. to get specialized care. But the Canadian system also pays for the treatment when they go.

Who pays for treatment for Americans who don't have insurance?

 

[Mike]

Who pays for treatment for Americans who don't have insurance?

Either the patient pays or the same as up there, the rest of the taxpayers.

The point of the article is that there is not enough healthcare providers or facilities to go around in Canada. That is what comes with gov't mandated and gov't negotiated health care prices.

 

[hypocritexposer]

Who pays for treatment for Americans who don't have insurance?

Either the patient pays or the same as up there, the rest of the taxpayers.

The point of the article is that there is not enough healthcare providers or facilities to go around in Canada. That is what comes with gov't mandated and gov't negotiated health care prices.

Wait until obama adds 30 million "insured" down there. I wonder how quick the doctorrs needed can be found. :???:

 

[Mike]

Who pays for treatment for Americans who don't have insurance?

Either the patient pays or the same as up there, the rest of the taxpayers.

The point of the article is that there is not enough healthcare providers or facilities to go around in Canada. That is what comes with gov't mandated and gov't negotiated health care prices.

Wait until obama adds 30 million "insured" down there. I wonder how quick the doctorrs needed can be found. :???:

You are correct Keemosabbee. Making less money with triple or quadruple the patients won't help either.

Just at one hospital here, 13 doctors have already announced their retirement in the past few weeks.

But it is funny/strange that the largest profiting hospitals down here are primarily for the indigent. You know, the ones that OT said don't get paid for. :lol:

 

[I Luv Herfrds]

I have insurance now but also had to deal with the 5 year wait for coverage.
We paid the $6k for having our son. Paid my yearly Dr. check ups. Only once did we have gotten coverage through the govt and that is when I had an emergency c-section and DD was in NICU for a week That bill would have been over 15k.

Also knew people who laughed about going for medical care and not paid a single dime while I watched my bill climb because of them.

So I see both sides of the issue.

 

[Tam]

FYI, The Fraser Institute is not exactly non-partisan.

One thing left out of the story is that sure, sometimes Canadian health professionals will send patients to the U.S. to get specialized care. But the Canadian system also pays for the treatment when they go.

Who pays for treatment for Americans who don't have insurance?

Some of the patients were sent and the Healthcare system paid BUT care to guess how many left Canada to get the treatment they needed and paid for it themselves after paying taxes in Canada that was to provide their healthcare for them?

My guess is a VERY SMALL amount of those leaving are being paid for.

 

[Faster horses]

Some rancher friends told us today that their insurance just increased
by $300/month!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[I Luv Herfrds]

There was actually a story in the Great Falls Tribune some time ago about Canadians coming to the US to get medical treatment. Talked with one guy who had a back injury who was at least 6 months out for the surgury he needed up in Canada. He came down here and the Doc told him if he had waited that long he would have been crippled.
I cannot remember if he paid for the 3 trips it took and the surgury itself.

 

[TSR]

Who pays for treatment for Americans who don't have insurance?

Either the patient pays or the same as up there, the rest of the taxpayers.

The point of the article is that there is not enough healthcare providers or facilities to go around in Canada. That is what comes with gov't mandated and gov't negotiated health care prices.

Wait until obama adds 30 million "insured" down there. I wonder how quick the doctorrs needed can be found. :???:

So those that get sick and need care (of those 30 million today) just don't go to a doctor or the ER, is that what you are implying?? They can't find doctors??

 

[hypocritexposer]

Either the patient pays or the same as up there, the rest of the taxpayers.

The point of the article is that there is not enough healthcare providers or facilities to go around in Canada. That is what comes with gov't mandated and gov't negotiated health care prices.

Wait until obama adds 30 million "insured" down there. I wonder how quick the doctorrs needed can be found. :???:

So those that get sick and need care (of those 30 million today) just don't go to a doctor or the ER, is that what you are implying?? They can't find doctors??

Many at this time, IF they do not have insurance will only go when it is absolutely necessary.

We have many people in Canada that go whenever they have a sniffle, cause it's "Free". When there is no "out of posket" expense, some people take advantage and others get spoiled.

 

[Silver]

Wait until obama adds 30 million "insured" down there. I wonder how quick the doctorrs needed can be found. :???:

So those that get sick and need care (of those 30 million today) just don't go to a doctor or the ER, is that what you are implying?? They can't find doctors??

Many at this time, IF they do not have insurance will only go when it is absolutely necessary.

We have many people in Canada that go whenever they have a sniffle, cause it's "Free". When there is no "out of posket" expense, some people take advantage and others get spoiled.

Personally, I would quite like to see a small "user fee" in place here. It may just keep some of those folks out of the emergency room whose child has the sniffles, shortening waiting lines and saving large amounts of healthcare money.

 

[Tam]

Not to be disrespectful to the elderly but a user fee might also make some of them think twice before going to the Doctors office simply because they are lonely and want somebody to talk to.

 

[hypocritexposer]

I like the idea of user fees better, but the premium system was okay a few years ago, when we had it here in Alberta.

At least it was a monthly charge that people noticed.

 

[Tam]

I like the idea of user fees better, but the premium system was okay a few years ago, when we had it here in Alberta.

At least it was a monthly charge that people noticed.

The thing about the premium is you are basicly charging healthy people again for something they are not using . They already have to pay their taxes. In a way a premium would just be another tax. A user fee makes those that use and sometimes abuse the system help pay for it.

 

[hillsdown]

I like the idea of user fees better, but the premium system was okay a few years ago, when we had it here in Alberta.

At least it was a monthly charge that people noticed.

It also went into general revenue ,NOT health care . That is one of the reason it was scrapped, it was just another tax on the people that already pay taxes for some to have "free" health care.

 

[Kato]

I worked in a doctor's office for a couple of years, and I don't remember anyone coming in for frivolous things. There was one lady who was a hypochondriac, but she was not your average patient. She bordered on a psychological disorder, so probably should have been there anyway.