NUPGE urges Obama and U.S. legislators to give Canadian health care system a fair hearing
'The overheated rhetoric and outright falsehoods that you’ve heard about the quality and viability of Canada’s system simply do not stand up to scrutiny.' - James Clancy.
Ottawa (24 July 2009) - The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE), one of Canada's largest unions, is asking President Barack Obama and members of the U.S. Congress to look past the "malicious misrepresent
More..ations and scare tactics" in their current debate over American health care reform and see the true value of Canada's single-payer health system.
"Our single-payer system is, quite simply, a good and sensible idea that serves Canadians extremely well," NUPGE president James Clancy says in a letter to Obama, U.S. Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and all members of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.
"The overheated rhetoric and outright falsehoods that you’ve heard about the quality and viability of Canada’s system simply do not stand up to scrutiny," he argues.
Clancy said he felt obligated to write to the U.S. legislators after Prime Minister Harper and Health Minister Aglukkaq refused to step in and counter the anti-Canadian propaganda being spread by private health care interests battling health care reform in the United States.
He says a multi-million-dollar tidal wave of special-interest propaganda is trying desperately to obscure the fact that Canada's single-payer health care system has been "a triumph of values and economics" for more than 40 years.
Health-related bankruptcy unthinkable in Canada
Canadian health outcomes, on almost every critical measure, are among the best in the world, and Medicare covers all Canadians at substantially less cost than U.S. citizens pay for a system that leaves millions without coverage, he notes.
"It’s totally unthinkable to Canadians to experience bankruptcy due to medical bills, as do over one million Americans every year. Unlike in the U.S., not a single Canadian who is unemployed has lost the ability to access health care during the current economic recession."
Canadian health care also gives small and large businesses "a clear competitive advantage" in today's difficult economy by freeing all employers from any obligation to provide health care to their workers. "Our single-payer system does that for them," Clancy says.
And contrary to the egregious misinformation now being widely spread by U.S. special interest groups, Canadians are free to choose any doctor they want and all decisions about personal care and treatment are made by patients and their doctors. "There’s no interference by the government or private insurance companies," Clancy says.
In the letter Clancy also offers to organize a “study mission” for U.S. legislators who are interested in learning first-hand how Canada’s single-payer system actually works.
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE Less..
Added: Aug 1 2009 In: news_politics
By: Big__Beezy
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- Comments: 39
Comments - sort by newest to oldest
www.nupge.ca (not sure why the link doesnt work)
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "Big__Beezy" (R)
Um...ok...so a socialist endorses Canada's socialized medical system.
What a shock.
Can you name a labor union of any size anywhere in North America that doesn't support big government and large scale wealth redistribution?
Didn't think so.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "vicsemprini" (R)
Mind your own business you dumbass canucks.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "sins07" (R)
I really don't understand what some Americans are scared about... seriously. The system does work, yes it can be better but people get good health care. You should actually consider this an opportunity to improve on the system.
It's actually pretty great to know that health care is covered and a fundamental part of life in Canada. I have never had to worry about not being insured, unless I visit the US.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "rattler72" (R)
It's actually pretty great to know that health care is covered and a fundamental part of life in Canada. I have never had to worry about not being insured, unless I visit the US.
well considering we have 10% of their population and they don't even have a reliable # of how many illegals there are, i'd say their situation is much different..
Ya I'm not saying it would be easy... I just don't understand the complete opposition to it. I suppose it's the people who have a great insurance policy who are opposed.
How about a 2 tiered system. Would that ever work?
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "rattler72" (R)
Our health care right now is not so horrible if you have a plan like i do and dont have a life-threatening illness. If none of the above, not so much. Our current dental really sucks because the entire thing is not organized to extract teeth but money. Thus by logical extension so is US health care. For a layman's guide to US healthcare refer to Chris Rock: "We ain't cured nothin' since polio".
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "Hitler_Is_Amazing" Premium
We were out of it until a few southern senators started fear mongering and telling tales about Canadas health care system . Funny i actually use this system and it works . But what would i know .
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "concretehead01" Premium
it became our business when you started bad mouthing our system, which works pretty well btw.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "nav201" (R)
Don't mess with it. Why does Obama have to screw everything up so quick?...
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "T_Bone69" (R)
It's actually pretty great to know that health care is covered and a fundamental part of life in Canada. I have never had to worry about not being insured, unless I visit the US.
well considering we have 10% of their population and they don't even have a reliable # of how many illegals there are, i'd say their situation is much different..
Ya I'm not saying it would be easy... I just don't understand the complete opposition to it. I suppose it's the people who have a great insurance policy who are opposed.
How about a 2 tiered system. Would that ever work?
The opposition to it is as follows:
78% of Americans are completely and totally happy with their health care, their plan, and their doctors.
America has some ambiguous # of uninsureds that want free care, so instead of addressing how to get those people covered, Obama wants to completely and totally destroy the system that we all want and like to take care of what we all agree is a group that needs coverage. Americans with brains say "OK, its needing work so let's FIX it, not DESTROY it and replace it with a government run plan."
Our government can't run a single program without fuking it up beyond belief. Let's try listening to the PEOPLE of this country for once with this damn Obama administration. What a concept, huh?
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "yorba" (R)
How many MRI machines are there in Canada?
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "pajbivona" (R)
Fair hearing? Has if a liberal union of government employees is going to offer a disccussion of facts rather their own one-sided political rehtoric. LAUGHABLE.
If you want to know the truth about Canadian Health Care, do what I did, go to the source. Big surprise the stories are true, the Canadian system is, and has been "In the Red", they are continuing to cut services, beds, and jobs. They are spending about $5200 per person for their "coverage" and they are still cutting services.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "tsnwi" (R)
Did you include the 'http://' part of the address?
If you don't it usually just redirects back to LL. If that's not the issue then I don't know what is, these days LL has so many bugs that anything can happen seemingly without reason.
Anyways this is a great article, I'm no fan of unions usually but in this case NUPGE has my respect, somebody has to stand up for us since our government won't.
Those calling our system here in Canada "socialized" need to take a trip to Europe and get a reality check - Canada's system is actually conservative compared to true socialized systems.
Our system is a compromise between privatized and socialized systems that combines aspects of both.
Finland is probably one of the top socialized systems in the world and an example of an actual far-left system where the agency(Kela) that oversees the healthcare system also oversees all of Finland's social welfare programs(pensions, student financial aid, unemployment assistance, financial aid for military personal and their families, housing benefits, etc.), rather than the more centrist system employed in Canada and hated so much by American right-wingers and which they like to portray as being a far-left system so as to completely eliminate the actual far-left positions from the discussion.
There is no far-left position in this healthcare discussion and debate, just like the far-left is removed from most issues so as to be able to scaremonger the American people into believing that the moderate liberals that to the rest of the world are considered more centrist than leftwing in ideology are actually radical liberal communists and socialists.
It's a good way to keep America conservative and rightwing, even when under the administration of a supposed "radical" leftwing government.
In America radical conservatives are considered right-wingers, the moderate conservatives are considered centrists, the actual centrists are considered leftwingers and the moderate liberals are considered radical lefwingers. The actual radical liberals/leftwingers don't really exist in the public domain and don't get any real media coverage, and yet the media is still supposedly under their control and spewing radical leftwing propaganda according to the rightwingers.
For reference the website for Kansanelakelaitos*Kela) in Finland:
http://www.kela.fi/in/internet/english.nsf/NET/130608115359HS?OpenDocument
Kela looks after basic security for all persons resident in Finland through the different stages of their lives. Kela counts among its customers everyone living in Finland and anyone living outside Finland who is covered under the Finnish social security system.
The schemes administered by Kela cover such areas of social security as family benefits, health insurance, rehabilitation, basic unemployment security, housing benefits, financial aid for students and basic pensions. In addition, Kela provides disability benefits, conscripts' allowances and assistance for immigrants.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "Macky_J" (R)
Please look at life expectancy, child mortality, and other medical statistics. You will find that even CUBA is better than America at most of them.
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "Tjunker" (R)
Canadians always want our apporval not to mention there healthcare is lowgrade comepared to ours
Posted Aug-1-2009 by "ChesterTheWorm" (R)