[Cloudbringer]

Animal, my only comment is about the 'elective surgery' being the only waiting list.

I have a friend on Vancouver Island who's an expat American, married to a Canadian and quite in love with Canada (been there many years now), but her one and only major complaint is the lousy health care. (her description!) She told me that when she had gallstones and was passing out from the pain, they put her on a gurney and told her she'd have to wait....she was literally banging her head on the wall when they told her she would need surgery and would be put on a waiting list. A few days later she was hemoraging and in agony- called for emergency care and eventually got into a hospital. I won't bother to mention the horrors of her recovery, but suffice it to say, she attributes her lousy care to 'free' healthcare and would love to see something done to improve the system.

Personally, I don't find that to be 'elective surgery', myself and her description of routine care sounded pretty bad the few times we've discussed it.