Unfortunately as a fellow Canadian I have to disagree with some of this. I probably know just as many people with botched diagnosis and treatments as those with proper care. Particularly in regard to cancer treatment, my younger brother at 21 lost his best friend to cancer that started with a lump on his elbow which was diagnosed as tennis elbow, it was only realized he had cancer once he developed chest pain from the cancer spreading to his lungs, at that point there wasn't much they could do. I also had a neighbor in his mid 60's with a similar ordeal, had cancer was treated and then diagnosed cancer free, he died a month later of cancer. My aunt was also diagnosed with leukemia last year and underwent treatment, she finally got to the point she had to walk in and demand tests and transfusions to keep her alive because the system seemed to loose interest in her case. She fortunately made a successful recovery.
The cost is also not free for most cancer treatments, many of the specialty drugs required to treat it aren't covered by the government and in many cases cost $5k+ per month. My brother's best friend was this case, but they also had 4 other children to feed at that time, how does a family make choices like that? I also worked with a gentlemen whose wife fought cancer for 5 years before passing, same deal $4k per month for drugs, he spent his entire retirement savings on this.
I definitely don't like the fact that the US system is un-affordable for many people, but the level of care is outstanding. I know I'm an extreme example here in Canada, and that most do have successful outcomes, but our system is far from perfect.
