I don't really think there is really a close comparison to Canada's and the UK's health care system with the public option as it was proposed here anyway-- both of those countries had true single payer systems,"public" to be sure, but not an "option" to taxpayers.

I would be more than willing to support Canada-style health care here.  I never bought into Obama's rhetoric that we needed a "uniquley American solution" to healthcare-- why not import a tried and true system from one of the many countries around the world that has lower-cost, better-outcome healthcare than we do?  The answer, of course, is that we would have to raise taxes singificanly to pay for the system, and no politician wants to be labelled a tax-raiser.

The public option as it was propsed in this debate was never something that I really supported.  The only way I would have wholeheartedly  supported it would have been if it was part of a transition to a true government-run healthcare system, and all the politicians supporting the public option were falling all over themselves denying that.  What's the point, then, to create another muddled industry like finance where the lines are blurred between government participation and private industry? 

I really think we could have a better system of private, for-profit health insurers in this country, but i think you'd need to drastically increase oversight and penalties.  I'm not sure if the Chinese don't have it close to right when they execute high-level white-collar criminals who knowingly jeopardize the public health by committing fraud, taking bribes,etc.  It just seems that too many people are willing to game our system and take their chances dodging our sparse enforcement and slap-on-the-wrist penalties.

The bottom line on health-care reform is this:  right now our country is too cash-poor, too infused with corruption, and too ill-informed to make meaningful comprehensive health care reform even possible right now.  We really need to take the corrupting influence of campaign money out of the equation.  I would propose something like a $10 cap on individual donations and a ban on coprorate money in elections.  That would put a stop to big healthcare corporations stuffing the campaign coffers of politicians, for one thing.  Right now we have a system where politicians buy reelection via legalized bribes.  I don't know how anybody can think that we will have solid reform under such a system.  And it's not just the politicians and the big corporations who are at fault-- it's been an apathetic, self-centered citizenry that has enabled the situation.  So we are getting what we deserve-- mediocre, high cost health care.

The public option has been removed from the current bills before Congress at this point, so the debate is probably moot.  I have no confidence that the current "reform" will amount to much in the way of improvement.  Hope I am wrong!