Health Care System Is "Sick" and Imploding

Dr. Anne Doig called the nation's health care system "sick" and Imploding.

"We know there must be change" Doig said in a recent interview. "We're all running flat out, we're just trying to stay ahead of the immediate day-to-day demands. .. (Citizens) have to understand that the system we have right now -- if it keeps on going without change -- is not sustainable."

Doig said she isn't sure what kind of changes need to be proposed, but she knows that changes have to come, and fast. She said she understands that the current system has been good in some ways, but it has not always been helpful for truly sick people and their families.

Who is Dr. Anne Doig?

She is the incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association. Doig has asserted that Canada's universal health care system is not giving patients optimal care. When she and her colleagues from across the country gather at the CMA conference in Saskatoon this weekend, they sill discuss changes that need to be made.

What changes might be discussed?

Private insurance. Current president of the CMA, Dr. Robert Ouellet will make a presentation at the conference about his findings when he toured several countries and met with health care groups. He has said that "competition should be welcomed, not feared." He believes that private health insurance should have a role in the public health system.

This would be a good move for Canada. If the United States goes to a government run universal health care system, the good citizens of the U.S. will need someplace to go for health care, and Canada is close. Think of the boost this would give to the Canadian economy if they would move to a privatized system.