Hi, there. I just thought I would offer my experience using the Universal Healthcare system in Canada. At about the time I moved to Canada, I was diagnosed with Mixed Connective Tissue Disorder (MCTD)---while still living in Atlanta., Georgia I remember anxiously waiting while the insurance company approved the tests my doctor said I required as well as the medications to relieve my pain. When I moved to Canada, I had not signed up for the Medical Services Plan (MSP) ($!08/month for my entire family), so I had to get some meds and tests and pay out of pocket. I was stunned at how much less the same treatments costs in Canada! After signing on to the MSP, all of my healthcare needs are covered, with the exception of prescriptions--although there is a Pharmacare system that adjusts the cost of prescriptions according to your income. I have been in Canada now for 15 years and love how my doctor can order a test and it is done. I don't have to wait for procedures, with the exception of surgeries. The surgery wait times are always being addressed and improved. The queue is organized in a triage-like fashion. If I have a life threatening situation, I am in surgery immediately and others are bumped. I don't mind being bumped because the other person is helped and the system is providing high-quality care in a timely fashion, based on patient need. As I understand it, many physicians left Canada when the country first changed to universal healthcare amid cries of Canada becoming a socialist or communist state....the usual epithets hurled when folks get nervous about a change. I can honestly tell you that I wouldn't want any other kind of healthcare and, returning to the US would make me quite nervous in terms of what would be covered and approved by folks sitting at a computer with a checklist rather than the doctor who knows my personal situation. My MCTD morphed into Rheumatoid Arthritis, as it often can. It is a very serious condition that requires close monitoring, which I get from a specialist, just as I would in America--only I am referred and it happens....No one can tell me I can't have a procedure done. My doctors and I are in charge of my healthcare decisions, not profit-making businesses. With this focus on healthcare, I find that my doctors give me extraordinary amounts of consultation time. Patients get 15 minutes with a doctor here. FIFTEEN MINUTES! I was lucky to even see the doctor in the States and if I did, it would only be for about 3 minutes. Please don't believe the fear-mongering of folks that stand to profit from continuing the American healthcare system the way it has been done. Singe-payer is the way to go. Cheers, Jack Dr. J. Lucius Edwards Victoria Conservatory of Music