Where Do WE Go After Obamacare Is Passed?
My brother, ‘Books’ Belvedere, sent me the link to this article in The Globe And Mail of Canada, Sue Bailey reporting:
Premier Danny Williams of Newfoundland and Labrador is undergoing heart surgery in the United States later this week because the treatment he is seeking was not available in his home province, his deputy premier said Tuesday.
Mr. Williams, 60, decided to go to the United States for surgery after weeks of consultation with his doctors, Kathy Dunderdale said.
“Having the surgery done in the province was never an option,” Ms. Dunderdale said.
“Obviously, it’s taken some time to have the diagnosis, progress, consultation with a number of medical experts, so it has taken several weeks.”
Ms. Dunderdale would not reveal what the surgery was beyond the fact that it was heart surgery. She also declined to say where and what day it will take place and whether the type of surgery Mr. Williams is having was available elsewhere in the country.
“Ultimately we have to be the gatekeepers of our own health and he has taken medical advice from a number of different sources … He is doing what’s best for him,” she said.
Ms. Dunderdale said she wasn’t sure if the premier was covering his own medical costs.
“I would expect that he is eligible for all that the rest of us would be in terms of our own private insurance or government insurance and I’m sure if there’s anything over and above that the premier will certainly take care of it himself.”
Mr. Williams, an independently wealthy former lawyer and businessman who donates his premier’s salary to charity, will take anywhere from three to 12 weeks to recover, Ms. Dunderdale added.
Ah…when you’ve got a serious health problem, it’s nice to be an ‘independently wealthy’ Canadian…for now.
One more item of interest from the report:
His decision to go to the United States for health care has triggered a heated debate online, particularly in a province that has tried to restore public confidence in its health care services after a major scandal involving botched breast cancer tests.
At least it wasn’t botched heart condition tests.
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