Health Care In Canada Essay
America and Canada are so close to each other but yet they both have two different types of healthcare systems. Our healthcare system does not seem to keep its citizens as healthy as the Canadians health care system so we will take a look at Canada's healthcare system and see what makes their system work.
America is one of the greatest nations in the world. It also has a huge problem that it cannot seem to resolve. Healthcare is becoming one of the hottest issues in America today. There are millions of people working and living in America who do not have even the most basic health insurance for themselves or their families. The United States spends more on health care than any other industrialized nation in the world and yet, its citizens …show more content…
are not the healthiest. The US healthcare system is the most expensive of systems, outstripping by over half again the health care expenditures of any other country.
Health care costs in the United States continue to rise and less people can afford it to purchase any coverage at all. The number of people without health insurance continues to increase The Medicaid and Medicare systems we currently have are overburden and often abused.
Medicaid has become a major budgetary issue for many states over the last few years the Medicaid program, on average, is taking up a quarter of each state's budget.
The Medicaid program provides health care services to many Americans, the largest group being children. It is estimated that Medicaid pays for nearly 60 percent of all nursing home residents and about 37 percent of all births in the United States.
The Canadian government provides a comprehensive free package for all its citizens which can be compared to a HMO in the states. The cost for medicine is very affordable compared to the price of filling a prescription in the United States.
Canada provides each Province to manage their own healthcare system. For example, each Province issues their own healthcare identification cards and negotiates with the Federal Government for money to cover their healthcare costs. Each province also provides their own Prescription Drug Benefit Plan, available to every Canadian regardless of income level. Prescription drug benefits are however adjusted for income, with a higher co-payment required for those with higher personal incomes. The prescription drug benefit is very comprehensive and rarely excludes a medication. Where there is a medication excluded, which is needed by a patient, the patient applies for coverage under the plan for that drug using a Section 8
form.
Despite wait times and funding cuts, Canadians do receive a very high standard of care, about the same compared to what a privately-insured US citizen would get. The Canadian system is much more affordable for certain items such as patented drugs and this difference in price has created a large prescription drug exporting industry in Canada. Older medicines that are off patent tend to be somewhat more expensive due to less competition as entry into the Canadian market suffers from government barriers.
The Canadian governments spend a smaller amount per capita on health care as the United States governments, while almost every Canadian citizen is fully covered. In the United States there are large percentages of the population who are uncovered or only marginally covered, despite higher proportional spending along with large private investment. Even more are just a job loss away from not having coverage (although in most cases the employer must maintain health care with co-payment of the patient for a period of time after employment in the United States.)
In conclusion the United States needs to rethink and implement its healthcare policy; maybe it should take a look at Canada's healthcare system and adopt key features from their system. American people should have the best healthcare at a fair price for a nation that helps so many other nations maybe its time we help ourselves.
America is one of the greatest nations in the world. It also has a huge problem that it cannot seem to resolve. Healthcare is becoming one of the hottest issues in America today. There are millions of people working and living in America who do not have even the most basic health insurance for themselves or their families. The United States spends more on health care than any other industrialized nation in the world and yet, its citizens …show more content…
are not the healthiest. The US healthcare system is the most expensive of systems, outstripping by over half again the health care expenditures of any other country.
Health care costs in the United States continue to rise and less people can afford it to purchase any coverage at all. The number of people without health insurance continues to increase The Medicaid and Medicare systems we currently have are overburden and often abused.
Medicaid has become a major budgetary issue for many states over the last few years the Medicaid program, on average, is taking up a quarter of each state's budget.
The Medicaid program provides health care services to many Americans, the largest group being children. It is estimated that Medicaid pays for nearly 60 percent of all nursing home residents and about 37 percent of all births in the United States.
The Canadian government provides a comprehensive free package for all its citizens which can be compared to a HMO in the states. The cost for medicine is very affordable compared to the price of filling a prescription in the United States.
Canada provides each Province to manage their own healthcare system. For example, each Province issues their own healthcare identification cards and negotiates with the Federal Government for money to cover their healthcare costs. Each province also provides their own Prescription Drug Benefit Plan, available to every Canadian regardless of income level. Prescription drug benefits are however adjusted for income, with a higher co-payment required for those with higher personal incomes. The prescription drug benefit is very comprehensive and rarely excludes a medication. Where there is a medication excluded, which is needed by a patient, the patient applies for coverage under the plan for that drug using a Section 8
form.
Despite wait times and funding cuts, Canadians do receive a very high standard of care, about the same compared to what a privately-insured US citizen would get. The Canadian system is much more affordable for certain items such as patented drugs and this difference in price has created a large prescription drug exporting industry in Canada. Older medicines that are off patent tend to be somewhat more expensive due to less competition as entry into the Canadian market suffers from government barriers.
The Canadian governments spend a smaller amount per capita on health care as the United States governments, while almost every Canadian citizen is fully covered. In the United States there are large percentages of the population who are uncovered or only marginally covered, despite higher proportional spending along with large private investment. Even more are just a job loss away from not having coverage (although in most cases the employer must maintain health care with co-payment of the patient for a period of time after employment in the United States.)
In conclusion the United States needs to rethink and implement its healthcare policy; maybe it should take a look at Canada's healthcare system and adopt key features from their system. American people should have the best healthcare at a fair price for a nation that helps so many other nations maybe its time we help ourselves.