Thank goodness your mom's ok! *hugs* Thanks for posting this, Binx!

Hi Binx!
And yes, we know my friend.
Thanks!
Bow

Hi there Nery and Rainbow, glad that you saw our post! Mom said that she has had so much on her mind lately that she didn't realize that it was this month until she saw pink stuff at the store! She just thought that there might be more people that might have forgot also! :)

Boy can my mom relate to your mom on this one, Binx. She had spots removed while in her 20s, too, and her doc is keeping a close eye on some spots right now. Her aunt is a breast cancer survivor - over 10 years now. Early detection can make such a difference. The spots they are watching on my mom now are about the size of gains of salt and can't be felt yet, but they are on top of it.

>^..^<
The Pawsitively Fun Clan
Patches, Tom Cat, Sweetpea, Pippi, and Cheeky
... and various others

Cheeky, that is scary! Mom said she had a mole that changed color and started to bleed and the Doctor said it needed to be checked right away. Who would have ever thought at 23 someone would have to be checked for breast cancer! You just never know do you! I hope that your mom stays ok for a very long time to come! :) Binx

I bend a knee to the breast cancer fighters. (Do dogs have knees?). Well anyway you know what I mean. My Auntie had breast cancer and is now better. Early detection is the key. In Canada we can get a mammogram every year for free if someone in the family has been diagnosed. If not every other year. We have OHIP that is government funded. We are very lucky in Canada. Curious, how is it in the U.S.?

Please don't mind my thanksgiving outfit. Our thanksgiving is next week. My mommy is embarrassing me.

Oh Abby, what a great Thanksgiving photo! That is so funny! Not sure about the dogs having knees though, mom just felt and it doesn't seem like it, hmmm.... She is going to find out though! It is not like that here in the US, but I have heard of different times that women can get checked for free, that was in NY though. Not sure in Florida. Unfortunately in the United States there are an awful lot of people that can not afford health insurance so they do not have it.

My mom said something about a traveling trailer that goes around doing mammograms for women that can't afford them. Luckily we don't have that type of cancer running in our family. Hope none of our friends have to go through that. :)

Hi Tinkerbell, that is great there is a traveling trailer like that and that it isn't in your family. It is not always hereditatry though, you just never know that is for sure! We hope that your family and all of our fur friends families stay very happy and healthy! :)

That is so bad that your government does not recognize that breast cancer is one of the number one killers of women in America and give these exams for free. I think our health care is better even though sometimes we have to wait for other things. Pretty much everything is covered here. If you break a leg, hospital, doctor and xrays all covered. My human did this a few years ago up north. Having a baby is free, emergency room visits etc. Drugs however are not, you need a company drug plan, but if they are dispensed in the hospital they are free. Your drug plan also includes perks for hospital stays and dental coverage. My Aunties breast cancer treatment was all covered, including doctor visits. I think that the money part of this stops a lot of women from seeking treatment and getting test in the US. I wonder what the statistics are in the US and Canada. Would like to compare them to see if this theory is correct.

Hi Abby. I have to agree, so many women do not get checked because of this. There are so many people that need regular care that do not get it because of no insurance. Mom goes to college with an older lady with diabetes that has no insurance so she does not ever get the medications she needs for it. That is amazing how all of your medical stuff is covered there. Are there long waits to see Doctors and stuff like that? You said that you have to wait for some things, what kind of things would that be? I would be interested in seeing the difference between there and here as well!

Even with good insurance things can add up quickly. With Mom's insurance they will pay 100% for a mammogram starting at age 40 and I believe once a year after that. If there are problems or other factors that would warrant one before that it is covered but you have to have a referral from a physician. So far the extra mammograms and mammograms with magnification every 6 months have all been covered 100% as well. On the other hand, you mentioned doctor's visits and emergency rooms. For Mom an emergency room visit has a $100.00 co-pay. Guess they really want to discourage those. A doctor's visit is $25.00.

Lets start with Binx. I will explain "talking human" it will make more sense. My mother is diabetic and all her meds are paid, including the glucometer. (I think that is what it is called). Most of the companies offer very good prescription plans. The Big 3 (now the small 3) in "Canada" have a good plan. Every 2 yrs we get $220 for glasses if we need it. Dental is covered under this as well. Almost all of the meds are covered here. We pay 35 cents for a prescription. If not you can buy into a plan. Also I think, but not sure if you are diabetic you can still get your meds. My nephew has had 3 kidney transplants and is on special meds. All are paid for. The operations by OHIP and the meds thru a drug plan. Hospital prescribed meds are not charged. If you are on welfare (social assistance) everything is paid and you do not need a drug plan. We get one year parental leave paid by the government. If you get hurt and are working you get compensation. Loose your job you can get unemployment for not sure how long (never unemployed). We have a shortage of doctors, more so further north. Some operations take longer to get done. Most essential surgeries take precedent I guess and we don't have as many hospitals as you do. For Cheeky - Emergency room visits no charge, doctor appointments no charge. Free flu shots for all. Binx we feel so sad for that poor woman at the college. :(

Binx I have been looking for the stats - do we have a mathematics wizard who could figure out female population ratio. Also actual cases and death data is hard to find. Help Anyone.

Cheeky's mom, that is insane isn't it, $100 copay! Blake just got a very basic insurance plan through his work and it has a high copay, no dental, ho hospitalization at all, and things like that. And he pays for it out of every check just to have it! Gregory has nothing at all. And Abby's mom, that is amazing that all that stuff is covered. The only downside it seems is that there are not enough doctors so that some surgeries have to wait. Here in the United States there are more doctors than you can imagine I am sure. As for the numbers, not one for that but sure would love to have someone that was good at figuring all of that out to see the difference between Canada and the US!!

Binx, I think we pay more personal taxes than the states. Hospital never used to be paid. In Ontario we had OHIP first and we paid our employers to participate in group health insurance plans. Then in 1990 they made the employers pay for it (ouch!). Then they changed it again and they calculated your income and took a percentage of a specified amount according to what you made. If you made under 20K you paid nothing in taxes if you made over 200K a year you paid $900 in taxes. Most fall in $300 dollar range. And the employers still pays his part. We used to have these plastic cards with a magnetic swipe strip. After a while fake ones were being made and used. They finally made us get new photo ID cards. So I guess in the end we pay something thru our government tax system.

Hi Abby, I see now! No matter where you are everyone pays in some way right! As for making fake cards, that is everywhere also I guess. Do you like the way it is there for you or are there things you would change if you could?

It is good compared to some countries. It must make some difference for diagnosing breast cancer and treatment, as it would not be a financial burden to your family. I could very easily see how the cost would stop someone from having the tests that we get for free. Seriously my sisters family would not have survived the 3 transplants and all the meds without it. Maybe one day you will get universal health care.

Hi Abby and Abby's mom. That is just amazing to me that even the transplants and all that goes with it are covered, and all the cancer treatments too, holy wow! I do hope that it gets to be easier here for everyone to have good coverage as well, it is so sad to hear when people are not getting treatment when they need it so much. There has to be a better way!

I was in the hospital via the e.r. almost 2 years ago for a kidney stone that got stuck and abcessed(sp?) I was only in the hospital for 41 hours and the bill was over 12,000 dollars. We paid over 2,000 in co-pays. And that was for a simple surgery and recovery. Major things can go into the 100,000 easily. I can easily see why people avoid things. We know a few women who make trips to Canada to get their meds for cheaper.

Tinks mom

Hi there Tink's mom, oh my dog that is crazy isn't it! That is a small fortune to have to pay for 41 hours! I have also heard of a lot of people going to Canada for meds. There have been stories on the news before of people taking busses there even. It is so sad I think that in this country where there is so much that there are still people who can not afford to get basic or any health care. Let's hope that none of us get sick any time soon! :)

That's for sure. Safe and healthy :):) All creatures great and small :)

Yup, that is so what we all want as well! Safe and Healthy for all! :)

Tink that is horrible that they charge so much. We hope that you get some kind of universal health care in the states. It is the decent thing to do. Kidney stones are very popular and even my Mommy has been to the hospital a few times and stayed overnight. My auntie Liz was expecting baby ZuZu and she had kidney stones and spent 3 weeks in the hospital and had a stent put in and then delivered the baby. She did pay extra for a private room, but not $1000s of dollars. Holy cow, I would hate to see the bill if we lived in the U.S. Yes there are people coming to Canada for meds and some in buses. We do not mind. We know it is difficult in Ohio and Michigan and drugs are expensive.