The Pros And Cons Of Healthcare In Canada

In 2010 Barack Obama signed the healthcare reform law requiring all Americans to have insurance. While this law decreases the problem of the uninsured in America, it does not solve the problem of the ever increasing cost of healthcare in America. As it stands today, America is the only major industrialized country that does not provide a universal health care system to its citizens (see Appendix A for a geographical view of nations with universal healthcare). Healthcare reform in Canada began in 1947 in the province of Saskatchewan, when public hospital insurance was initiated. This was followed by an increase in services over the 1950’s and 1960’s. Prior to this, Canada’s healthcare system was similar to America’s private system of

Polls indicate findings that satisfaction rates among users of private and universal healthcare systems are comparable. The results of three recent Gallup Polls show that more than half of residents in the United States (53%), Canada (52%), and Britain (55%) describe their respective healthcare systems as excellent or good (see Appendix B for ratings concerning the quality of healthcare in the United States, Canada, and Britain). The overall positive response from all three countries is an indicator that most citizens are satisfied with the quality of their healthcare, regardless of whether it is from the universal or private

Does every citizen have the right to have access to basic health care in the wealthiest country of the world? The current healthcare system in America has many inequalities in the access, quality, and cost of healthcare among different economic groups of people. In addition, it would be more beneficial to give citizens access to preventative care that could avoid health issues by addressing them early on, while they are still manageable. Siegfried Karsten (1995), professor of economics at West Georgia College, brings up a valid argument in the American Journal of Economics and Sociology when he questions whether “society really can afford not to cover all people…..is it economically and politically rational to continue to have millions of people develop serious health problems, at great costs to society……because they are financially unable to obtain the necessary medical care when it does them the most good?” (p.138). The cost of healthcare in America is a deterrent to lower income groups who cannot afford insurance, or even if they have insurance, hesitate to seek treatment due to deductibles and copays. Canadians do not pay a co pay for primary care visits. This is an encouraging factor for all of its citizens, regardless of social status, to seek medical treatment earlier rather than later. Interestingly, there are not many differences between survival rates in Canada and the United States for middle and upper income groups,