Canadian Healthcare Model: NY Times article

[Botnst]

Future argument for the USA as we embrace socialized meds.


The publicly financed health insurance system remains a prideful jewel for most Canadians, who see it as an expression of communal caring for the less fortunate and a striking contrast to an American health care system that leaves 45 million people uninsured. But polls indicate that public confidence in the system is eroding, although politicians remain reticent to urge increasing privatization of services.

During the recent closely fought election campaign, Mr. Martin promised to fix Canada's health care system "for a generation," focusing on trimming waiting times for diagnostic tests, cancer treatment and elective surgery like hip replacements. He is eager to use this televised gathering, billed as a health care summit meeting, to reverse the current view among many Canadians that his government is vacillating and may well fall next year.

But medical professionals and local officials say a major reason it may not be easy to address the problem of slow access to treatment is because doctors who do preliminary diagnostic work, refer patients to specialists and monitor the care of chronically ill people are less and less available - especially in small towns and rural areas.

A 2002 report from the Canadian Senate said that the actual number of family doctors had decreased only slightly in recent years but that the demands of an aging population were growing. Meanwhile, several recent studies have shown that family doctors are working shorter hours.

Young doctors are more likely to seek the most lucrative work in cities or go to the United States rather than start more modest practices in small towns because of growing debts when they leave medical school. That has set off an increasing competition among small towns to attract doctors.