CANADIAN HEALTH CARE EXPERT ISSUES SMACKDOWN ON SMUG U.S. SENATOR

The Los Angeles Times' Michael Hiltzik points us to an exchange on health care between a "smug" Senator Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Dr. Danielle Martin, VP of Women's College Hospital in Toronto.

During the U.S. senate hearing Dr. Martin dismisses Sen. Burr's remarks about doctors leaving Canada for the U.S. and patient "wait times" in Canada. Dr. Martin explained that there's actually an influx of U.S. medical doctors going into Canada (a surprise for many), and that wait times in Canada are a product of "elective medical procedures" that patients choose to have.

Dr. Martin added that the evidence shows that simply because someone elects to go to the U.S. to have an expensive surgery doesn't necessarily mean that they're getting better treatment. Health care outcomes in areas like cardiac surgery in Toronto, she noted, make this clear.

According to Hiltzik the "ultimate zinger" came when Sen. Burr thought he had Dr. Martin cornered on wait times:

BURR: On average, how many Canadian patients on a waiting list die each year? Do you know? 

MARTIN: I don’t, sir, but I know that there are 45,000 in America who die waiting because they don’t have insurance at all.  

There's more, which you can read about here. You can also watch the entire hearing here (Dr. Martin's comments start at the 1 hour mark) ... "http://www.c-span.org/video/?318225-1/hearing-health-care-access-costs".

- Mark