Don't believe Republicans' lies about the medical system up here. That's the message of Health Care Stories from Americans in Canada, a web site created by the group Democrats Abroad Canada.

The site gathers testimonials from Americans who have had good experiences with public health care in Canada. Don, for example, writes:

"My wife underwent two major surgeries, had eight rounds of Chemo, 30 radiation treatments, cat scans, X-rays. Never waiting more than an hour for treatment. Three months in hospital in a private room. Our bill for this $000,000.00. I bet my taxes are no higher than yours [in the US]. We call it caring for each other, not profit for the rich Republicans who are fighting to keep our plan a secret."

Don's post is titled "True Canadian Health Care."

Elsewhere on the site is a NewScientist video showing the worsening failure of U.S.-style health care, a video clip of Vice President Joe Biden explaining the Obama administration's reform package, and another clip with former labour secretary Robert Reich explaining the president's "public option".

In a mass email letter, Ken Sherman, chair of Democrats Abroad Canada, asks American-born residents of Canada to provide more assistance in the U.S. health care fight, saying: "This site is updated frequently with the latest health care articles and information. Add your voice to the debate by sharing your stories and comments there. Please forward this link to your family and friends back in the United States and ask them to join you in writing a letter to the Congress."



The goal, he says, is to sponsor a busload of Americans from Canada to visit Washington, D.C. to press members of Congress to vote for the Obama initiative. That won't happen until November. Already, though, the bus has a name: the Tommy Douglas Express.

David Beers is editor of The Tyee.