Pros And Cons Of A Two-Tier Health Care System

Healthcare - the pride and joy of all Canadians. Canada’s health care system has been one of Canada’s greatest accomplishments and one of the defining points of what it means to be Canadian. Our system, envied around the world, has given us pride and joy as many people around the world pay large amounts of money just to get the standard of care we have in Canada. Yet in recent times it has been under great controversy. Is it really effective? Is it really equal? Is it harming our citizens? Many Canadians argue that a two tiered healthcare system would benefit Canada and that we should get rid of the system that we have come to love. So just how effective and efficient would a two tiered healthcare system for Canada be?

Many countries today

Universal single-tier health care is not only a Canadian institution, but also the most efficient and ethical system of healthcare for Canadians. Our single-tier health care system has been the bragging point of the benefits of being a Canadian and will always be. Furthermore, a two-tier system would be incredibly expensive to implement, and raises the danger of a deteriorating public health care system and creates a gap between the rich and the poor. A two-tier system would mean that two people facing the same problem would have a difference in level of care based primarily on their ability to afford private care. This goes against our Charter of Rights and Freedoms as it makes one man above the other man simply by the amount of money they earn. Health care is a right; and while richer people may have advantages in many ways, they should not deserve a longer life than the rest of the population. The evidence from studies in Canada and abroad shows that two-tiered health care creates longer wait times for the 99% and less equality for everyone. In 1984, when Canada adopted the Canada Health Act we banned extra billing and user fees. We fought hard to win this system not so many years ago, in fact many Canadians remember a time before medicare. We managed to create a progressive system based on our values of equality and justice. Canadians need to remain vigilant in their support for public health care. Capitalists and the 1% are going to try to take that away, they always will because there is profit to be made in health care. We need to fight hard to save what we've built and to continue building it. There are still many programmes in health care (like pharmacare, dental care, home and community care) that would benefit from public expansion of health care. We need to work on phase two of medicare to create a more just and affordable