First, the Canadian troubles: 750,000 citizens north of the U.S. are currently on waiting lists for medical procedures, according to Sally Pipes, president of the Pacific Research Institute and a former Canadian citizen. Plus, 10% of the Canadian population (3.2 million) is waiting just to see their primary-care physician, and if they need to see a specialist, Canadians must wait an average of 17.3 weeks. This situation exists because the Canadian government controls costs by rationing care, causing long waits and a lack of medical equipment in some areas.

 

Feulner cites the ordeal many Canadians have endured under the single-payer model. A 67-year-old woman diagnosed with cancer had to wait months before seeing her oncologist. A Member of Parliament, Belinda Stronach, traveled to California to get her cancer treatment instead of relying on the system she strongly supports. A Calgary woman had to be flown to Great Falls, MT, to deliver her quadruplets because the “relatively small American city had better facilities than any hospital in the wealthy province of Alberta,” says Feulner.

 

Instead of copying Canada, “We’d be better off changing how the federal tax code treats health insurance,” Feulner insists. “Such a change would foster genuine competition among insurers by allowing Americans to shop for the coverage that suits them best in an open market.”

-Noel Brinkerhoff