And a Times editorial last August glowingly declared: "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."
Well, tell that to Danny Williams, premier of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The popular 59-year-old politician has discovered that nothing is for free. He's somewhere in the US today -- prepping for heart surgery.
Seems the procedure he needs simply isn't available in Newfoundland -- at any price.
And, with his own health on the line, he prefers to put his trust in the "second-rate, profit-driven health-care behemoth" south of the St. Lawrence, rather than try a hospital in Canada.
"Ultimately, we have to be the gatekeepers of our own health," said Williams' deputy premier, "and he has taken medical advice from a number of different sources,"
Williams, he added, "is doing what's best for him."
Precisely.
Last summer, President Obama -- who still hopes to overhaul American health-care -- defended the Canadian system as one that "works for Canada."
Not for all Canadians, apparently.
Certainly not those well-connected pols, who -- like Danny Williams -- can afford better health care in the good ol' US of A.