mm wrote :
Quote:So,why couldnt she get the surgery in Canada?
I thought their healthcare was better then ours.
just speaking personally , i don't think i have said that canadian healthcare is BETTER , just that we call it UNIVERSAL - and i'm NOT WILLING TO GIVE IT UP !
people that have lots of money - or not that much money (see article by AARP below) - will go wherever they think they can get the health care they prefer AND can afford .
i really don't want to go into a long , drawn-out debate here .
americans have their style of health-care and the canadian is somewhat different - as long as i don't have to give up my canadian healthcare , i'm happy to let the americans have their own style .
one problem for me is that american health providers want to gain access to canada under the "free trade act" and want canada to change to the american style - and i'm not in favour of that .
americans don't have all their medical needs taken care of in the USA and neither do canadians have all their health needs taken care of in canada .
i don't see any problem in that .
as an aside : our local university teaching hospital has a rather elaborate scroll displayed in its lobby .
it's a scroll of appreciation by the commander of the fort drum army base (near watertown/syracuse , NY state) , thanking the canadian hospital for medical services to some of its personnel .
it seems that canadian medical services are acceptable to the U.S. army .
many foreigners - including americans - come to the shouldice clinic in toronto that has a worldwide reputation for - of all things ! - HERNIA OPERATIONS !
saudi princes , canadian workingmen , americans that have the money : they are all welcome at the clinic .
so if some canadian has the money to go the U.S. , to mexico or to europe for a operation , i don't see anything wrong with that .
but to repeat : don't ask me to give up my canadian healthcare .
i'm reasonable sure you might be willing to agree with me .
hbg
ps. we don't mind crossing the border to watertown to pick up certain items that cost less in the U.S. , have lunch and return in the evening - and we've always been given a friendly welcome and hello by the border guards , merchants and americans in general . it seems to work well both ways - never been a problem so far !
Quote:U.S. Steps Back on Drug Seizures
Homeland Security to end the practice of prescription drug seizures from Canada.
By Barbara Basler
October 2006
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Bowing to public and political pressure, the Department of Homeland Security agreed this week to stop confiscating the prescription drugs Americans order by mail from Canadian pharmacies.
Since the agency quietly stepped up its crackdown 11 months ago, customs agents seized and destroyed some 40,000 prescription drug packages?-many of them en route to older Americans who order their prescriptions from Canada because they are significantly cheaper than the same drugs sold in the United States.
The Department of Homeland Security mailed notices to the intended recipients saying that their purchases violated drug importation laws. Although cross-border shipments are illegal, authorities did little to stop the practice until the seizures intensified last November.
The policy prompted a nationwide public outcry, with Florida Sen. Bill Nelson, D, demanding a congressional investigation of the confiscations, and the media, including the September AARP Bulletin, highlighting stories of older Americans who suddenly and without warning lost critical medications.
Now, the practice of seizing these drugs will be stopped, according to an e-mail that Homeland Security sent Monday to congressional staff.
Starting next Monday, federal agents will limit confiscations to counterfeit medicines and narcotics, said a spokesperson for Homeland Security's U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency.
"This is a huge victory," said Sen. Nelson, whose Florida office alone got more than 600 complaints from constituents. "It looks like the government is getting out of the business of harassing these consumers."
The drug industry strongly opposes legalizing the importation of prescription drugs from Canada, arguing that it would undermine the government's ability to assure a safe and secure supply of drugs.
Earlier this month Congress approved a measure that would permit individuals visiting Canada to bring home up to a 90-day supply of prescription medicines for their own use. Sponsors say this change is only the beginning?-they plan to push for a more comprehensive measure that would also legalize mail-order purchases.
source :
AARP BULLETIN
