Re Quebec Ban On Private Medical Care Struck Down (on-line edition, June 9): If I have $2,000 of hard-earned money in my bank account, I am free to spend it on whatever I like.
If I don't want to put it toward supposedly "good" things such as home renovations, a new dishwasher or a holiday, I have the freedom to spend it on notionally "bad" ( though not illegal) things such as cigarettes, alcohol and dirty movies. But, in Canada, I wouldn't be able to use my money to get a hip replacement.
I'd have to wait months (if not years) for this service from the public system, even though I was happy to pay for it and forgo the new dishwasher or the holiday. Why can't I? Because paying anything toward one's health care is an American idea and somehow evil.
I'm thankful to the Supreme Court for recognizing how ludicrous this is, and for opening the door to a two-tier system that, though imperfect, at least gives me some choice of how I spend my money when the public system fails me.