clipped from: www.theglobeandmail.com   
In a blistering statement this week before the Canadian Senate,
Conservative Senator Hugh Segal
took on the U.S. Republican Senate Leader
Mitch McConnell

"According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average lifespan in Kentucky is 75.2 years and according to Statistics Canada, that number is 80.4 years in Ontario, 78.3 years in Kingston," he told the Canadian Senate after discounting Mr. McConnell's numbers.

"Furthermore, according to a Fraser Institute study, in 2006, the U.S. spent $6,714 per capita versus $3,678 in Canada."

Reality check

U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell and Kingston General Hospital (KGH) give very different estimates of the waiting time for certain treatments:

Sen. McConnell KGH Hip replacement 196 days 91 days Knee replacement 340 days 109 days Cardiac bypass surgery 6 months 16 days Neurological cancer surgery 3 months 8 days Breast cancer surgery 3 months 16 days Prostate cancer surgery 3 months 49 days