 |
| http://media.oregonlive.com |
Canadian healthcare is free for everyone and covers everything but prescription drugs, eyeglasses and dental care. It basically works like Medicare, but for everyone. In the Atlantic, a reputable magazine, Olga Khazan compares American healthcare to Canadian healthcare. If America had Canada’s healthcare system, lives and money would be saved, but people would have to wait to get treated and the medicine they need might not be covered.
With Canada’s system, 57 million fewer people would go without healthcare because of cost. Also, America would save $1.3 trillion. Many people pay more than $1,000 out-of-pocket for medical care a year. If people don’t have that kind of money to spend, they might be left without medicine or care they need. Free healthcare would avoid 50,000 preventable deaths.
Free healthcare comes with disadvantages. A very important issue is prescription drug coverage with healthcare systems like Canada’s. Many prescription drugs can save lives and keep people healthy, but many Canadians don’t have access to them. People can buy supplemental private insurance to cover the things not included in the free healthcare, but some may not be able to afford that. Also, the wait to see a doctor is very long. In 2010, “33 percent of Canadians waited six days or more to see a specialist, compared with 19 percent of Americans,” and the average wait for ER care is long compared to other countries.
I think in America there could be a system like Medicare for all ages. Even though there would still be disadvantages, many people would be able to get the care they need and save money. That would decrease the amount of spending and prevent more deaths.
Future Research Question: How would free healthcare affect doctors?
You did well formatting your post and using your evidence.
ReplyDeleteI think it's cool that you compared the health care systems of both the US and Canada because I know both of those health care systems are compared regularly. I think you had lots of good evidence and stats that added to your argument. Maybe with your next research question you could also research how free healthcare affects the economy.
ReplyDeleteYou did a good job at describing what both healthcare systems were like. I think you could include example of specific peoples problems with each of the systems.
ReplyDelete