Posted on 06/14/2009 3:43:56 PM PDT by SilvieWaldorfMD
As a Canadian living in the United States for the past 17 years, I am frequently asked by Americans and Canadians alike to declare one health care system as the better one.
Often I'll avoid answering, regardless of the questioner's nationality. To choose one or the other system usually translates into a heated discussion of each one's merits, pitfalls, and an intense recitation of commonly cited statistical comparisons of the two systems.
Because if the only way we compared the two systems was with statistics, there is a clear victor. It is becoming increasingly more difficult to dispute the fact that Canada spends less money on health care to get better outcomes.
Yet, the debate rages on. Indeed, it has reached a fever pitch since President Barack Obama took office, with Americans either dreading or hoping for the dawn of a single-payer health care system. Opponents of such a system cite Canada as the best example of what not to do, while proponents laud that very same Canadian system as the answer to all of America's health care problems. Frankly, both sides often get things wrong when trotting out Canada to further their respective arguments.
As America comes to grips with the reality that changes are desperately needed within its health care infrastructure, it might prove useful to first debunk some myths about the Canadian system.
Myth: Taxes in Canada are extremely high, mostly because of national health care.
In actuality, taxes are nearly equal on both sides of the border. Overall, Canada's taxes are slightly higher than those in the U.S. However, Canadians are afforded many benefits for their tax dollars, even beyond health care (e.g., tax credits, family allowance, cheaper higher education), so the end result is a wash.
(Excerpt) Read more at denverpost.com ...
It's sad enough the Americans posting here regard this article in ignorance , you should know better. CPP deductions are also a tax deduction , stop at a gross income of 46K and if your average tax rate is 35% then you live in Quebec and make at least $120,000 a year. The tax on that amount in Ontario is 30.6% , on $60,000 , 21%. Including both Fed and Prov. taxes.
The truth is taxes in both countries are very close.
The writer doesn’t understand the number one reason not to want government run health care....all her points, good or bad, are meaningless b/c she has no freaking clue what it means to be FREE. She can write all day about how great it is her Aunt had to wait (and by her own omission in pain!) 14 months for a knee replacement (snort, are we really suppose to believe waiting in pain is a good thing?!) she still misses the big picture...freedom.
“As a Canadian living in the United States for the past 17 years, “
Then you have no credibility to discuss the current state of the Canadian health care system. It is clear that you only use that line as a way to change the United States to the society that you fled.....
“Those patients who do come to the U.S. for care and pay out of pocket are those who perceive their care to be more urgent than it likely is.”
Ah, she can’t figure out why anyone would have the ability to manage their own physical well being, beyond what the government beaurocrats deem necessary. She can’t figure out why an individual would not cave to dictatorial policies.
I sincerely doubt I’ll EVER see one red cent of my CPP contributions, and I know I’ll never get a cheque from the EI program, so that makes them both what: mandatory non-taxes?
So what if my CPP/EI contribution(s) lower my “taxable” income. All that means is that I don’t pay income tax on the money used to pay a tax. Big whoop!
The way I interpret my deductions is very simple, not nuanced and sophisticated like you do. My simple method is:
If the government takes the money, it’s a tax.
As for your claim that taxation levels are close, why is it that after a 90 minute ferry ride South of my current location, the stuff in my wallet goes further, even after taking the exchange rate into account? Or do subjective arguments and observations not count?
How about fuel taxes, liquor taxes, etc?
I can buy a case (24) of Canadian beer for ~$18 in Washington. The very same beer, from the same brewery costs $21 here for a 12 pack.
Then there’s the price of gasoline. On Saturday, the best price available on the lower mainland was $1.049/litre. In Sumas WA, it was $0.749/litre.
But the taxation levels are very similar. Yeah. On your planet perhaps.
Well it's nice to know you'll never be out of work . Too bad you're going to die before you're eligible to collect your CPP.
Taxes are not that different between the US and Canada . I pay 75 bucks/yr for a car plate, a poster on FR tells me he pays $300. Another will pay for city garbage pick up , I don't. When I sell my house I don't pay capital gains . In the US someone selling their home might . I use a TFSA . Every dollar I make in that account is tax free. You can pick all the examples you want , fact is when all is considered the income taxes in the two countries are damn close.
After 43 years I collect my CPP. This isn't too sophisticated . Keep paying those premiums. You deduct them , I'll spend them.
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