Canada's impending implosion

According to Dr. Anne Doig, the incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association, the Canadian health care system is "imploding"...not "having difficulties", or "needing some adjustment", or even "in need of an overhaul"...but "imploding." Implosion is pretty serious...in fact, that's the same process that, in astronomical terms, describes the birth of a black hole--in other words: a MAJOR occurrence. She also mentions that they're "all running flat out" and "just trying to stay ahead of the day-to-day demands."

Now, if we take a look at what she's says, she's describing a health care system that is slightly smaller (33.6 million) than the "hole" in the health care system that AfterDowningStreet mentioned in their blog even IF we get Obama Care passed in the US (36 million). So, with even a smaller system than those who would be without if we passed this legislation, it is still unsustainable. The other angle to look at is that the proposed health care system would, theoretically, be available to the entire US population (notice I didn't say "imposed upon"...so let's not go there) of roughly 305 million people (or just over 9 times the size of Canada's population).

In essence, even those who are currently "without adequate health care"--that 45 million figure that we keep hearing about (a figure which is still highly debatable)--are almost 1 1/2 times the size of the current Canadian system. So, even if we decide to pursue a public option for those citizens, the current situation in Canada should give us pause!

Here's the article:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5jbjzPEY0Y3bvRD335rGu_Z3KXoQw

I am still not in support of universal health care because of its all-encompassing nature, but if we need to establish a public option for those who are in need of one (and ONLY for them), we must take Canada's current situation to heart and realize just how tenuous this proposal can be. We must be careful not to simply throw out the suggestion without realizing the gravity of the proposal. It can very easily debilitate our economy. If you are on a ship that is sinking and make it to a lifeboat, what happens when you overload the lifeboat? It sinks and everyone aboard is back to square one. Similarly, we must let our zeal outdistance our abilities...to do so will result in certain failure!