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[shootingstar]

I wish a lot of Canadians who ***** and complain about our system, would read in detail what some of you experience in the U.S.

Just to give a taste of CAnadian health care system for someone like myself who also has employee health care benefits since this situation was my most intensive use of the health care system for me so far..

My concussion accident a year ago after cyclist crashed into me ..
Since I was injured in another province, my ambulance ride was $500.00CAN. It was covered by my employee health care benefit. Yes, I would normally have to pay all that. A British Columbia resident would be paying under $100.00.

Kept overnight in emergency services in bed where I was seen by neurologist and interns every few hrs. I did have some meals. Then I was discharged. I made sure I asked for my discharge patient record. I was in a large rm. along with 10 patients. Quite fine for overnight. I knew I would need it once return to Alberta for my rehabilitation.

I found out later I didn't have to pay for any costs in emergency services because British Columbia authorities check again Alberta's public hospital care rates, etc. So no difference in rates. Otherwise I would have to pay for any differences.

Then I had to see my family doctor in Alberta every 2 wks. during lst 5 months of my rehabilitation. No charge, just call my doctor. There were some charges for her to fill in employer disability forms for medical assessments each time. This is more for the employer but still it is a charge. The doctor kindly charged me at a reimbursable rate where I got covered off by benefit plan. I did have some drugs which were 80% coverage for cost but if I didn't have employee benefit, I would have had to pay in full.

Had 8 sessions of physiotherapy which were covered by employee benefit. However without benefit, I would have had been limited to 6 sessions through only certain physio clinics. I had never used physiotherapy before.

I did see a sleep doctor specialist twice..there were no out of pocket expenses. It was part of the public health care system. If I had an overnight sleep assessment that would have been $800.00. But I didn't need that. We already knew what my problems were. (which are common for concussion patients).

I would have had to have far more serious after effects for a full neurological assessment which was another 4 month wait. But I didn't need that. I was already working full-time.

Because I work for govn't, I do have a better employer health care benefits which include disability insurance because I couldn't work for first few months at all.

One of the difficult things probably in Canada which would be the same for parts of the U.S., is it's only the big cities that have specialists and the lack of family doctors in some rural areas. In Alberta, unlike Ontario, it is far more rural. Strong network of family doctor care and specialists are only concentrated in 2 cities for the entire province...Edmonton (350 km. north of Calgary. Edmonton is about 200 km. or more south of Fort McMurrary, the infamous Canadian oil tar sands area) and Calgary. This is very different than southern Ontario which has several top hospitals and other facilities because of several university medical schools in several major cities in that province plus programs for all other allied health care specialties.