Obama: The Canadian model would not work in the United States

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President Obama defended Canada's health care system on Monday, telling a Canadian reporter in Mexico that his country is often used as a "bogeyman" for the debate that has engulfed U.S. reform efforts.

However, the president said he is not looking to duplicate the Canadian model at home.

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"I suspect that you Canadians will continue to get dragged in by those who oppose reform, even though I've said nothing about Canadian health care reform," he told the reporter during a press conference at the North American Leaders Summit.

Obama said the United States spends the most money per person on health care but some measures show the U.S. doesn't rank at the top in terms of outcomes.

"We're not doing better than a lot of other advanced, developed countries that are spending much less per person," he said.

The president, however, said he wouldn't use the Canadian model because the U.S. system has already been built around "a private-based health care system that stands side-by-side" with Medicare, Medicaid and Veterans Administration health care.

"I've said that the Canadian model works for Canada. It would not work for the United States, in part simply because we've evolved differently," he said. "So, we've got to develop a uniquely American approach to this problem."

Canada annually spends $3,600 per capita on health care -- almost half of what is spent in the United States. Harper said that Canadians support their system, and the American debate is just that.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/08/10...t-work-america/

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

The president, however, said he wouldn't use the Canadian model because the U.S. system has already been built around "a private-based health care system...

Does that mean the Canadian system is not privatized? What is the opposite of privatized?