As has become fashionable, there's a lot of talk about the wonderful world of gummint-run health care. As I mentioned the other day, though, one should treat such wishes most carefully, because "free" things often end up costing a lot. Anyone who's ever adopted a "free" pet knows exactly what I'm talking about. As does Canadian citizen Shona Holmes, whose three year health care horror story began with a brain tumor:
"No one should be forced to travel thousands of miles to obtain quality care. Yet that exactly is what I was forced to do after being diagnosed with a brain tumor three years ago. After my government told me that I'd need to wait four to six months to see a neurologist and endocrinologist, and with my eyesight rapidly deteriorating, I decided to seek a diagnoses at the storied Mayo Clinic."
We've discussed Canadian med-shopping habits before, but these have typically been short jaunts "just south of the border." Ms Holmes had a bit further to travel (Scottsdale, Arizona, to be exact), where she was informed that immediate treatment was necessary. This meant an immediate return to her native land, where she anticipated her "free" national health care system to be waiting with open arms, eager to remove the offending and dangerous growth.
Regular IB readers already know what happened next: she was put on a waiting list and urged to "hope for the best." While that's a wonderful thought, it doesn't typically translate to an actual cure. So, she hopped another flight and flew back to Arizona, where she underwent surgery that successfully removed the tumor and restored her sight. But don't just take my word for it, here's Shona herself:
While policy wonks and candidates talk about the idea of government run, free health care, very few (I daresay none) actually address the reality of such systems. And while we see Canadian politicos eschewing the free health care to which they're entitled, and traveling thousands of miles inside the good ol' USA for actual care, I haven't read any stories lately (or, indeed, ever) about folks flying out of Washington National en route to Vancouver for that extra special medical attention.
[Hat Tip to BigGovHealth]
Posts
