Loathsome Premier of Ontario Mike Harris (1995-2002) removed dental and optometrist services from what's covered by OHIP. The coverage is yet to be restored.
Incidentally, Toronto city council appears poised to cut subsidized dental care for the poor right now.
For the curious, Canadian healthcare works as follows:
1. Ottawa gives the provinces money for healthcare. 2. Each province has its own program. 3. You have to reside in a province for six months before you are covered there.
Except that it's not: your own provincial plan will cover health care anywhere in the country... I can use my OHIP card in Alberta without having to apply for coverage in Alberta for a minimum of three months. Now, OHIP won't cover any treatment I receive in Alberta that they don't cover in Ontario and will only cover what they'd have paid an Ontario doctor for it, which may be an issue, but this isn't even remotely close to medical serfdom.
-- Steve's dental coverage is, alas, solely provided by a supplementary insurance plan from work and only covers 80% of billings... though he could pay extra to have that coverage raised.
Yes, the Canada Health Act was written to prevent that sort of lock-in... as a condition of receiving federal money to support provincial health insurance, that money has to be available to any Canadian citizen.
-- Steve thinks this is why a comparable system won't work in the US; there are just too many jurisdictions to make such a system functional. (52, instead of Canada's mere 13.)
I believe that the individual states are allowed to have their own healthcare systems. I've been waiting for California (or somewhere similar) to produce a decent one. I believe that Massachusetts has implemented something that's regarded as at least half-reasonable.
Yes, but IIRC there isn't a similar system of transfer payments to ensure that American citizens have comparable care throughout the country; that's tough enough to negotiate with 10 premiers, and doing so with 50 governors just sounds unmanagably complex. (Not to mention smacking too much of teh ebil soshulism.)
-- Steve also likes that his system doesn't have to worry nearly as much about "in-network" and "out of network" providers; a benefit of the single-payer insurance scheme that's often overlooked.
Even though I despise Harris too, I must point out that it was McGuinty that cut optometry services from OHIP. (Note that optometry is still covered for children, seniors, and those on provincial assistance.) The dental bit, AFAIK, is indeed all Harris'.
-- Steve thought that Rob "Baby Rush" Ford's election boded particularly ill for services in the GTA, and is sad to see this come to pass.
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Incidentally, Toronto city council appears poised to cut subsidized dental care for the poor right now.
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1. Ottawa gives the provinces money for healthcare.
2. Each province has its own program.
3. You have to reside in a province for six months before you are covered there.
no subject
no subject
-- Steve's dental coverage is, alas, solely provided by a supplementary insurance plan from work and only covers 80% of billings... though he could pay extra to have that coverage raised.
no subject
no subject
-- Steve thinks this is why a comparable system won't work in the US; there are just too many jurisdictions to make such a system functional. (52, instead of Canada's mere 13.)
no subject
no subject
-- Steve also likes that his system doesn't have to worry nearly as much about "in-network" and "out of network" providers; a benefit of the single-payer insurance scheme that's often overlooked.
no subject
-- Steve thought that Rob "Baby Rush" Ford's election boded particularly ill for services in the GTA, and is sad to see this come to pass.