Sicko

Sicko was good. Pure Michael Moore, but good. It was very effective. He started with a lot of people's horror stories: not being able to afford to re-attach limbs, bankruptcy after treatment, people dying because they were refused treatment, etc. Then he comes to Canada and interviews people about how our system is free and awesome. It was a very rose-coloured picture of our system. I mean, I love it, but he didn't mention that it doesn't cover dental, that there are some restrictions, absurd wait times, etc.

I loved the old guy he interviewed about the Canadian system. He gave a shout out to Tommy Douglas for being the man that started it all. And you just know that in a theatre somewhere Kiefer Sutherland is leaning over to whisper to the person next to him, “that’s my granddad they’re talking about!” Imagine, being the grandkid of the person who brought universal healthcare to Canada. Pretty sweet lineage.

After sucking up to Canada (He was totally sucking up. At one point there was this establishing shot of a Tim’s, and there’s no way the interview that followed actually took place in a Tim's. The table was made out of two-by-fours) Michael Moore goes to England and France. Their healthcare systems are WAY better than ours. He makes France seem like Heaven on Earth. Then he takes 911 relief workers to Cuba for medical care. The Cuban system comes across as better than the US system too.

Overall, it made Americans seem like a bunch of fools. Why are they putting up with HMOs and those insurance companies when healthcare is free in most other western countries? I find it so shocking that Americans seem to be afraid of public healthcare. They are so afraid of becoming socialists. There was even a recording done by Ronald Regan, back in his “acting” days, talking out against socialized healthcare. They made it out like the government would have the final say in your health, and that doctors would have no power. Whereas the current system where the for-profit insurance companies have the final say is so much better.

Moore drew some nice contrasts. In the US a doctor (who reviews insurance claims) will get a bonus if they reject the most claims. The more treatment they refuse, the richer they get. In Britain, doctors get bonuses if their patients quit smoking, or have lower cholesterol. So, the more treatment they give, the richer they get. Which, to me, seems like the way to go. It's cheaper to get someone to quit smoking now than it is to treat the cancer later.

You know, if I had to pay for my doctor visits, I just wouldn't go. It seems so obvious that healthcare should be free. It's a basic human right. People who want to privatize our system should see this movie. I think private healthcare in Canada would be a disaster.