Monday, August 13, 2007

Canada As Model for U.S. Reform?


In Friday's The Salt Lake Tribune, Sally C. Pipes wrote an editorial analyzing Canada's health care system based on her own firsthand experiences. According to Pipes, both her uncle and mother were denied adequate health care.

Pipes writes about fewer new drugs introduced in Canada compared to the United States, Canadian doctors making less than half of what American doctors are paid, and the long wait for many Canadian citizens to see a doctor.

Indeed, over 800,000 Canadians are currently on waiting lists for surgery and other necessary treatments. Many Canadians can't even find a doctor - about 10 percent are currently seeking a primary care physician. Canada now ranks 24th out of 28 countries in the number of doctors per thousand people, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. When the government took over the health-care system in the early '70s, Canada ranked second.

Pipes is President and CEO of the Pacific Research Institute, which is partially funded by the health care and pharmaceutical industry.

SOURCE: "Most Canadians Scoff at Portrayal of Their Country as a Health-Care Paradise" 08/10/07

2 comments:

  1. Pipes is not relaiable, to say the least:

    Pipes writes about fewer new drugs introduced in Canada compared to the United States...
    but, maybe not so much:
    http://cordis.europa.eu/eims/src/eims-r32.htm


    ...Canadian doctors making less than half of what American doctors are paid
    only in certain specialties, and as a physician, I can tell you that this is not a good thing. It pushes physicians to do procedure-oriented specialties - not what we want.. And besides:
    http://cmhmd.blogspot.com/search/label/Physician%20Income



    ... and the long wait for many Canadian citizens to see a doctor.

    Wrong again:
    http://cmhmd.blogspot.com/search/label/Waiting%20Times




    Many Canadians can't even find a doctor - about 10 percent are currently seeking a primary care physician...

    but at least they can afford to look. We take 1/3 of our population out of the ability to 'look for' a PCP by virtue of being uninsured or underinsured. So 10% is fantastic compared to the US benchmark!

    Canada now ranks 24th out of 28 countries in the number of doctors per thousand people, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. When the government took over the health-care system in the early '70s, Canada ranked second.

    What a useless piece of cherry-picked data that is.
    http://cmhmd.blogspot.com/2007/05/mirror-mirror-on-wall-international.html
    There's lots of great data comparing US and other countries systems, outcomes, you name it. Bottom line is, we don't do well.


    Cheers

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dr. Hughes,

    Many thanks for your thoughtful comment and fact-based critique of Pipes' editorial.

    Rachelle

    ReplyDelete

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