Guaranteed Healthcare

One of the lies we're told about single-payer is about wait times for necessary treatment in Canada. Well, I've only had one major procedure: a knee surgery. And I'd have been happy for the wait times they claim for Canadians.

I originally hurt my knee in high school. I crashed while on a skiing trip, causing a degenerative injury. At the time, I decided to just tough it out. By the time I was 25, I could barely tackle a flight of stairs on a good day, and the bad days were starting to outnumber the good. Of course, insurance being what it is, I couldn't do anything in one stop. I had to see my family care doctor. He was booked up for three weeks, and my insurance made me specify one particular GP.

So, three weeks later I go in, he takes a look at me, orders an MRI. A month later. So, a month later, I get the MRI. Now I have to see my GP again. Another three week late. He has me in, takes a look at the MRI, and refers me to a surgeon. Who can see me in four months. Four months later, the surgeon looks at my knee and confirms, yes, the cartilage in my knee is shredded and will get worse without surgery. He signs me up for his first available appointment for this easy, outpatient, minimally invasive surgery: In another three months.

This is what happens when the insurance works as advertised: A one-year wait for a half-hour surgery, as a result of which I can now easily ascend a staircase.