“It’s one of the best systems in the world. Everyone is guaranteed health care and it does not matter if you’re rich or poor or what your medical condition is,’’ said Kambli, who used to practice medicine in her native India.
To be sure, Canadians have their complaints about their health system - about long waits for elective care, including appointments with specialists and selected surgical procedures; shortages of doctors and nurses, particularly in rural areas; and the growing costs of covering an aging population.
The Canadian Medical Association wants to mix private insurance into the government monopoly. There have been lawsuits demanding the right to buy private health insurance. David Sebald, a Toronto-based health care consultant who has lived in the United States, calls for a copayment system to “eliminate the hypochondriacs.’’
But right now, Canadians are setting aside their criticisms of Medicare and rallying to its defense.
The reason: Their system has been dragged into the debate over President Obama’s health care reform proposals by opponents who say Canada proves the US leader is wrong - that Canadians endure long waits for critical procedures, medical rationing, and scant resources.
A TV ad sponsored by the conservative Americans for Prosperity Foundation spotlighted a Canadian woman, Shona Holmes, who has challenged the system in court. She spoke of suffering from a brain tumor and declared she would “be dead’’ had she relied on her government. She said she had to mortgage her home to pay more than $97,000 to get timely treatment at the Mayo Clinic.
In Canada, groups sprouted up on Facebook accusing Holmes of betraying her country and exaggerating her illness.
In a report on its website, the Mayo Clinic said Holmes was suffering from a Rathke’s cleft cyst near her pituitary gland. The websites of several reputable medical groups list the cyst as noncancerous.
