You have a very high and mighty view of a healthcare system ranked 37th by the WHO.  At least up here in Canada we admit our system isn't perfect.

I agree with you when you say that the private sector is more efficient than the government, but they are also profit driven.  Do you know what motivates hospitals up here to help people?  The need to help people.  What motivates hospitals in the US to help people?  How much they can charge.  If you can't see how broken the american healthcare system is than you're either wealthy enough or lucky enough to have full medical coverage.

By the way, our health care isn't free either.  I pay 108 CAD a month for our basic health coverage.  However, it IS universal, meaning that because I can afford to pay that much a month, those people who can't don't have to choose between visiting a doctor and buying food.  Do you seriously think its OK that 1/6th of the US population, 50 million people, can't see a doctor without getting charged out the ass?  How would you feel if you had to choose between letting your child die and remortgaging your house, or having a finger reattached for $10k?  You are right, it isn't free and tax payers will bear the brunt of the cost, but don't you think an extra tax burden accross all 300 million americans is worth those 50 million being able to get healthcare without having to weigh the financial costs? 

Who gives a **** if you have the most advanced medical techniques on the planet, if the cost prevents most people from using it?  From what I hear, its like pulling teeth to get your HMO's to foot the bill for anything considered even remotely "experimental".  Why?  Because finding some way to deny you saves them thousands, or maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars, which allows them to give their CEO's million dollar bonuses.  Give me a break.  The american system might be better for the rich, but its definitely not better overall.

108CAD?! I pay like 1000$ a month for ME, just me... and there's stilla 20$ copay and a who bunch of charges for medications and hospital visits... I've actually had to sustain myself on top ramen and maruchan for entier weeks to be able to afford to have fun and live.. with the cost of car insurance in newjersy and health insurance etc.

Checked my paper work 775$ a month..

Edit: In any event one of the worst things to happen to this country is the loss of unionized workers. Thank you federal government! Unions provide people with retirement, job security & health care... 

Yeah. It would be cheaper to have public healthcare. Those who argue against it are either making money off of the current system, or they quite literally don't know what's good for them. (many are misinformed and believe that because the government pays for it, it would be somehow awful)

 Hey elprincipe, does your name come from Machiavelli`s The Prince? I know this is off topic, but I am a big fan of Machiavelli.

 L.O.L.

Okay, I may now be an expert in politics, but I do know the healthcare system well enough to tell you 50$ a month won't cover it. 

 A single MRI (millions are done every day) costs $2000. Yea, and that's just MRIs. "Oh you broke you leg trying to enter our country illegally? Here let us pick up your $8,000 bill and let the tax payers pay for it"

@Souixan

Damn your getting screwed. I pay like $300/month for 100% coverage with a 20 copay. Sure somethings have a larger copay, like $150 for a hospital stay for a major surgery. But, $150 for a $25k heart surgery is a pretty good deal.

However, I still wouldn't mind paying an extra $100/month in my taxes if it meant everyone in my entire country could have a simple $20/$250 copay for any medical needed. Hell, I pay a good $100 or so a month to medicare as it is.

Wow, I'm shocked at how conservative this forum is...

Lesse, under a democratic president we've seen:

1. The end of WW1

2. The end of the Great Depression.

3. The end of WW2

4. Civil rights awarded to black Americans.

5. Various green laws that would have had us off of gasoline in the 90s, had Reagon not removed all of them.

6. A $350 Billion surplus, getting rid of the $7 trillion debt left Reagan and Bush Sr (which was only $2 trillion under Carter before them) . Not bad for a "spendocrat", eh?  

Of course, like every faction, I'm sure Republicans have their own twists for this stuff. But just like none of these successes can be attributed to any democratic president, neither can the successes that Republicans often tout (Reagon ending the cold war) be attributed completely to their leadership, either. So take this as you will.

Democrats aren't perfect, but to say "they've done nothing" is just pure igorance. After this president, and the attitude and sheer ignorance displayed by the Republican party, I can't bare to vote for another Republican. It is time America got with the times. Moved forward. Elected someone progressive to get us up there with those "other nations", with longer life spans and lower crime rates, due to better gun laws and medicare. The liberal model has been proven time and time again in other countries. It's time we began to adopt it.  Better gun control leads to fewer homicides and suicides. Better medicare leads to longer life spans and an overall better system for the poor. They both have their problems, but their both better then what we got now.

Let us move forward, America.

Ok canucks, you have just a few more people than the state of Texas, you can't compare our health systems. We have over 10 times the people you do! Also you don't have over 30 million illegals sucking off the system. They get free health care from the emergency room. Universal health care would be taking 1/7th of the national economy and handing it over to the FEDS. When has the federal government ever done a good job of handling money? You know costs would skyrocket. Remember when oregon wanted statewide healthcare and then they scrapped it when they realized it would cost each taxpayer 11k per year? A major problem with healthcare is it really already a HYBRID system half subsidized half private. We pay huge (or if we are lucky our employers) premiums and really don't have CHOICE, there really isn't a free market! How many people price shop doctors or their services?? Only for plastic surgery.. How many of you know how much your doctors charge for services? The FREE MARKET WORKS, but its NOT being used because of the HEALTH INSURANCE companies corrupt practices and there is collusion with the medical profession. I have a friend who has a brother who is a pharm sales rep. They take out doctors for a night out, spend like 3k on dinner and drinks and then the docs prescribe the medicine to us. CORRUPTION!!! and all legal. its bullcrap. IF they make it possible for TRUE competition then we wil see health insurance premiums plummet. as it is now it is a broken system benefitting doctors, health insurance companies etc.

My god. On the one hand the vast majority of the posts in this thread frighten me immensely. On the other hand, I know that jumping in won't do much good.

Instead, I'll just illustrate one reason why I, as a Canadian, am thankful for public health care.

My father passed away this August after a nine year battle with prostate cancer. Those years saw many ups and downs, with surgery, hormones, radiation, drug test groups and chemotherapy. These procedures were all covered under the public system. Had they not been, we'd have had to sell our house.

During the final 2 months, my father had to be hospitalized during one of his chemo treatments. His pain became unbearable. Within an hour he'd received an MRI and was given a bed in a semi private room. The MRI revealed that a tumor was pinching his spine, leaving him unable to use his legs. He spent the next 22 days in a private room, and an ambulance transfer was organized to take him to a different hospital for one final, major radiation shot.

Those 22 days, as trying and difficult as they were for all of us, didn't cost us a single penny aside from parking.

After 22 days of round the clock care, we were confident that my mother and I could care for Dad at home. We were set up with a home care case worker. A hospital bed was sent to our house and assembled for us, an occupational therapist came out to show us how to use the equipment and Ontario Patient transfer transported my father to the house.

For the next 5 weeks we saw daily visits from a home care worker who bathed him and even offered to do our laundry and keep him company while we left the house (we declined the latter two options), every other day saw visits from nurses to monitor his condition, bi-weekly visits from a physio therapist to ensure proper breathing and help him perform his exercises , weekly visits from the occupational therapist to ensure his equipment worked fine and deliveries as needed from the pharmacy.

Aside from the pharmacutical supplies and the patient transfer. Every thing was provided for us by the health care system. The bed, the workers, all of it, including the house call from the doctor when we knew that my dad was dying.

As it stands, this has been the hardest thing I've ever had to deal with. But were it not for our public health care system, I know that I wouldn't have been able to deal with it at all. My father lived a longer, more dignified life because of it, and my mother and I, though in mourning, aren't bankrupt.

That is all, you can return to your political theorizing.

@knuckles

everything you name (almost) happened 50 years ago or more, way before the dems sold their souls, lost their morals and sold out.

also, the civil rights act was almost stopped by southern DEMOCRATS

you mean the green laws that have pushed gas prices in cali up to 5 bucks? or the ones that created huge gas lines in the 70's jimmy carter that is all i have to say!! 20% home loans anybody?

If the liberal have their way we will all be living in commune style 'dense' housing taking the bus to work and paying 75% in taxes. no thanks