Canada's health care system...

...is often cited as an example of the last thing in the world that Americans should want. Republicans usually squint their eyes and point accusingly as they practically spit out, "Do you want a Canadian-style single-payer health care system?" It's almost as if they're asking, "How would you like it if I slashed your tires right about now?"

My experience with Canada only extends as far as the Toronto airport, so I have no idea what Canadian health care is really like. And it seems like every time I ask someone about it I get a different answer. I do know, however, that the Canadian single-payer system is virtually identical to Medicare, which is wildly popular among seniors (and many doctors). It seems that at least in this case it's better to have a government bureaucrat coming between a patient and his doctor than an insurance company bureaucrat. Go figure.

In today's New York Times, an editorial cites a recent study by the Urban Institute which found that:

Contrary to what one hears in political discourse, the bulk of the research comparing the United States and Canada found a higher quality of care in our northern neighbor. Canadians, for example, have longer survival times while undergoing renal dialysis and after a kidney transplant. Of 10 studies comparing the care given to a broad range of patients suffering from a diverse group of ailments, five favored Canada, three yielded mixed results, and only two favored the United States.

At the very least, the piece describes the comparison of the two systems as a "mixed bag." (The bills before Congress don't even consider a single-payer system; it's thought to be a political non-starter.) But keep this in mind the next time someone tells you that a single-payer system like Canada's (or Medicare) would be such a terrible thing.