[65784] in Cypherpunks
RE: Workers Paradise. /Political rant.
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (jbugden@smtplink.alis.ca)
Wed Sep 18 11:09:32 1996
From: jbugden@smtplink.alis.ca
Date: Wed, 18 Sep 96 10:38:11 EST
To: snow <snow@smoke.suba.com>
Cc: cypherpunks@toad.com
snow <snow@smoke.suba.com> wrote:
> Actually, don't some wealthy Canucks come south of the border for
> certain treatments unavailable in the Great White North?=20
=20
Yes, some wealthy (and not so wealthy people) go south of the border for
treatment. Some go because the treatment is unavailable here, others go if =
they
chose not to wait for treatment here. The most common types of exported ser=
vices
are usually high cost and/or experimental but their availability is most of=
ten
constrained by the low number of people who are qualified to render the ser=
vice.
Many services unavailable in a patient's local area are still covered by
provincial health plans. This works when a patient has to travel from a rem=
ote
region, to another province or to the U.S., and can cover experimental
treatments.
=20
Some Canadian hospitals make use of U.S. care providers for services when a
backlog exists in Canada. For example, Windsor has used Detroit MRI service=
s to
reduce waiting times.
There are also people who go the other way (U.S. to Canada), usually when t=
hey
have to pay their own bill. Detroit to Windsor is again not uncommon.
=20
> Are the PRICES as high in Canada as here?
=20
In general, prices are lower in Canada for the same level of care. I do not=
know
if the underlying costs are also lower in general.
=20
Each province create a payment schedule for services that it reimburses.
Hospitals bill the province for services, but all capital cost items (e.g.
equipment, buildings) must be paid for from other sources (e.g. donation). =
Thus,
we tend to have fewer capital intensive treatment facilities since the ROI =
is
usually low.
=20
The figures that I have seen indicate that the U.S. pays 40%-50% more than
Canada on overall health care services. Some of this is due to the rapid
availability of higher cost/experimental services. Some of this is due to t=
he
higher cost of the administrative bureacracy. Due to the large difference in
total costs, I do not think that travel in either direction significantly
effects this number.
=20
Ciao,
James
=20
Check out www.spinex.com for more effective alternatives to MRI for diagnos=
ing
spinal function at 1/20th of the cost.=20
=20
P.S. No, Canada is not perfect, and I don't know everything.
=20
