Ontario's cure for medicare: snitching

Good for them.

This is certainly good news for the health care industry in Michigan and New York state.

We have a for-profit system you tool!

Don't pretend to be naive for the sake of making a point in an article.

Let's wake up people, 100% publicly funded health care isn't sustainable in Canada.

All of a sudden a health tax won't cut it?

In what possible way?

Sure it is. But this article isn't really about that. It's about doctors directly billing patients with surcharges on services that are covered by OHIP, and doctors who pressure and mislead patients into paying for elective, unnecessary procedures in order to receive covered care.

If anything, these doctor scams are a burden on the health system as some patients may delay treatment due to cost and then require more expensive treatment on the government dime later on as a result.

Sure it is. But this article isn't really about that. It's about doctors directly billing patients with surcharges on services that are covered by OHIP, and doctors who pressure and mislead patients into paying for elective, unnecessary procedures in order to receive covered care.

If anything, these doctor scams are a burden on the health system as some patients may delay treatment due to cost and then require more expensive treatment on the government dime later on as a result.

Sure, that's not the intention of the article (however, it's a secondary topic within), but the woman decides to make it about that at the end.

If you think Canada's system is sustainable, you're being naive and ignoring the massive amount of population aging and us sitting back and doing nothing about it.

More and more services will start to be de-listed from Government insurance plans.

The best thing about this article, the great looking woman on the phone.

If she's answering I'm calling. What's that number again?

And replaced by what? Private insurance? Insurance is insurance. If a private organization is capable of collecting fees from all its members and using the aggregate amount to pay medical bills for those who incur costs, there's no argument that explains why a public organization can't do the same thing. Unless your argument is that rising demand and costs will make insurance of any kind (public or private)impossible. In which case I would expect that the health care industry, the the market and government would adjust accordingly to a more sustainable formula.

Maybe if government would stop catering to demands for new tax cuts every 5 years, there would be more money available. But given the popularity of public health care, the short-term response to rising health care costs will be to divert money from other programs.

In what possible way?

An MRI in Michigan is given to a Canadian the day after asking for one for $1000.00 of which the Canadian gets back $600.00. For the sum of $400.00 to get an MRI in just one day is worth it to some considering the six month wait here.



Sure it is. But this article isn't really about that. It's about doctors directly billing patients with surcharges on services that are covered by OHIP, and doctors who pressure and mislead patients into paying for elective, unnecessary procedures in order to receive covered care.

If anything, these doctor scams are a burden on the health system as some patients may delay treatment due to cost and then require more expensive treatment on the government dime later on as a result.

Sustainable with diminishing quality - personal experience shows that Gravol is given to those with a stroke with the explanation that the patient is wrong in not thinking they are simply having vertigo due to the sudden onset (as in less than 1 second) of the flu. No monetary amount in the world would be to much to ask for in that circumstance for proper medical care.

You hope to die knowing the principle of universal health care has not been breached in Canada but you would be best to hope it does not kill you because of that idiotic principle.

So it is up to everyone to choose a principle or one's life.

I understand the ideological reasons for universal healthcare in Canada, but as long as everyone continues to contribute to the government system, why not have a few private hospitals? The money coming in would be the same, wait times would fall somewhat, and if someone wants to pay to go to a private hospital, more power to them.

It seems to work in education. Everyone still pays taxes to the public school system, even if their kids go to private school.

In what possible way?

You have to ask? I'll give you one example. Needed to get our daughter a test here in Winnipeg. Was told we could wait 6 months to a year in line. Called down to Grand Forks and was told we could have an appointment that weekend for just $500 bucks, SOLD! Plus thanks to our health care system the Manitoba economy will also lose a lot of consumer dollars spent on cheaper US items while we're there.

In what possible way does that have anything to do with Ontarios "Snitch line"for drs who fraudulently bill?