Avoid U.S. health model: Clinton

[Guest guest]

" Zepp " <zepp

Tue, 16 May 2006 12:25:49 -0700

[Zepps_News] #Bill Clinton to Canada: avoid US health model

 

 

http://www.rawstory.com/

 

 

Avoid U.S. health model: Clinton

 

OLIVER MOORE

 

From Tuesday's Globe and Mail

 

The answer to Canada's health-care woes does not lie in the " insane "

system in place south of the border, former U.S. president Bill Clinton

said last night.

 

Speaking in Toronto, Mr. Clinton said that reform may be needed in

Canada, but he argued forcefully that the U.S. model is a " colossal

waste of money " that is " killing " his country competitively.

 

" It's a good thing, your health care system, with all of its problems, "

Mr. Clinton told supporters of the inaugural World Leaders Forum, which

he co-headlined with Israeli Vice-Premier Shimon Peres.

 

Mr. Clinton said that he was familiar with the Chaoulli decision of the

Supreme Court of Canada, in which the justices ruled that the public

system was too slow and struck down a Quebec prohibition on private

health insurance. Arguing that the United States had made a mess of

health care, he encouraged Canadians to study instead how other

countries have tackled these issues.

 

" Conduct a public set of hearings on every other advanced health-care

system and see who solved that problem best, " he said. " Surely there's

somebody who has figured out how to solve this problem. "

 

Mr. Clinton, who failed in his own attempt to overhaul the U.S.

health-care system during his presidency, pointed out that the portion

of health costs spent on administration in the United States is nearly

twice that of any other industrialized nation. He noted that health

costs for American auto makers are up to 15 times their Japanese

counterparts, even if all the manufacturing is being done in the United

States.

 

" Don't do anything that will lead to increased administration costs and

letting the financing tail wag the health-care dog, " he warned.

 

 

 

 

--