May 31, 1994 http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FChristopher-Hitchens%2Fe%2FB000APSKR0%3Fqid%3D1278211708%26sr%3D1-2-ent&tag=doc06-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325
Watch the full program: http://thefilmarchived.blogspot.com/2010/08/christopher-hitchens-and-peter-hitchens_01.html
Comparison of the health care systems in Canada and the United States are often made by government, public health and public policy analysts. The two countries had similar health care systems before Canada reformed its system in the 1960s and 1970s. The United States spends much more money on health care than Canada, on both a per-capita basis and as a percentage of GDP. In 2006, per-capita spending for health care in Canada was US$3,678; in the U.S., US$6,714. The U.S. spent 15.3% of GDP on health care in that year; Canada spent 10.0%. In 2006, 70% of health care spending in Canada was financed by government, versus 46% in the United States. Total government spending per capita in the U.S. on health care was 23% higher than Canadian government spending, and U.S. government expenditure on health care was just under 83% of total Canadian spending (public and private).
Studies have come to different conclusions about the result of this disparity in spending. A 2007 review of all studies comparing health outcomes in Canada and the US in a Canadian peer-reviewed medical journal found that “health outcomes may be superior in patients cared for in Canada versus the United States, but differences are not consistent.” Life expectancy is longer in Canada, and its infant mortality rate is lower than that of the U.S., but there is debate about the underlying causes of these differences. One commonly-cited comparison, the 2000 World Health Organization’s ratings of “overall health service performance”, which used a “composite measure of achievement in the level of health, the distribution of health, the level of responsiveness and fairness of financial contribution”, ranked Canada 30th and the U.S. 37th among 191 member nations. This study rated the US “responsiveness”, or quality of service for individuals receiving treatment, as 1st, compared with 7th for Canada. However, the average life expectancy for Canadians was 80.34 years compared with 78.6 years for residents of the U.S.
The WHO’s study methods were criticized by some analyses. Some argue that Canada has had higher mortality rates for some conditions, such as heart disease, owing to the use of particular medications. Although there is a measure of consensus that life-expectancy and infant mortality mark the most reliable ways to compare nation-wide health care, a recent report by the Congressional Research Service carefully summarizes some recent data and notes the “difficult research issues” facing international comparisons.
The health care system in Canada is funded by a mix of public (70%) and private (30%) funding, with most services delivered by private (both for-profit and not-for-profit) providers.
Through all entities in its public-private system, the U.S. spends more per capita than any other nation in the world, but is the only wealthy industrialized country in the world that lacks some form of universal health care. In March of 2010, the US Congress passed regulatory reform of the American health insurance system. However since this legislation is not fundamental health care reform, it is unclear what its effect will be and as the new legislation is implemented in stages, with the last provision in effect in 2018, it will be some years before any empirical evaluation of the full effects on the comparison could be determined.
Health care costs in both countries are rising faster than inflation. As both countries consider changes to their systems, there is debate over whether resources should be added to the public or private sector. Although Canadians and Americans have each looked to the other for ways to improve their respective health care systems, there exists a substantial amount of conflicting information regarding the relative merits of the two systems. In Canada, the United States is used as a model and as a warning against increasing private sector involvement in financing health care. In the U.S., meanwhile, Canada’s mostly monopsonistic health system is seen by different sides of the ideological spectrum as either a model to be followed or avoided.
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In this edition of “The Senate Doctors Show,” Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) talked about Sen. Max Baucus’ health care reform plan. He also answered questions from citizens about fraud in our health care system, Medicare cuts, health care for illegal immigrants, and other health care reform issues. 
Canadians have to put up with long waits to see specialists or get diagnostics like MRIs or CT scans. Now, businesses offering insurance products to help them avoid waiting for a critical test are trying to offer options, but they are finding resistance from special interests within Canada.
The Government of Canada concedes defeat to the H1N1 Pandemic, bypassing the distribution of Tamilflu, Vaccines and Hand Sanitizer, moving straight to the body bags.
Complete video at: http://fora.tv/fora/showthread.php?t=967
Wolf Blitzer mediates a heated debate between Georgia Rep. David Scott and Brian Hill, the doctor he screamed at during a town hall meeting for asking about health care reform, being accused of “hijacking” his event.
Canada’s public health care system promises universal coverage, but it does not guarantee universal access on a universal schedule. Long wait times force some Canadians living in pain to go out of country rather than wait 6 months to a year and a half for surgery for non-life-threatening conditions.
Keep your kids out of school rather than giving them this toxic vaccine.
Universal Health Care Message to Americans From Canadian Doctors Health Care Experts EXPLAIN THAT YOU ARE BEING LIED TO BY THE OPPOSITION OF HEALTH INSURANCE REFORM IN AMERICA..
2/2 Republican lawmakers remained staunchly opposed to using the federal government to regulate health insurance. Published with ‘written permission’ from democracynow.org. http://www.democracynow.org Provided to you under Democracy NOW! creative commons license. All credits for this video belong to democracynow.org the only independent news media in the United States and Canada.