Where I am in Canada we do have problems with wait times, and many people can’t find a family doctor. But it wasn’t always like this. Successive Conservative provincial governments have cut healthcare funding again and again, trying to force people into private for-profit healthcare. It’s the same story in the UK: public healthcare has been undermined by every government since Thatcher’s in the 1980s, and the NHS is not what it was.

Both are still better than the US system though, even after all the cuts. I have to wait about 2 weeks to see my doctor unless it’s an emergency. Emergencies can mean an hours-long wait at the hospital. I was recently admitted after an emergency and needed surgery and follow-up examinations. I’ve had an MRI, EKG, ECG, and a whole bunch of other tests with specialists, and more surgery. The care has been very thorough and the doctors excellent, and I have not had to worry once about costs.