The following is excerpted from the text of a speech to be delivered today in Washington by Jack Layton, leader of the federal New Democratic Party:

Sixty years ago Canadians families were on their own to pay doctor and hospital bills. Those with the money got the medical attention they needed, but those without struggled. Some sold their farms, or remortgaged their homes, and still others went without care, suffered, and even died because they didn't have the money.

Sound familiar?

One of my predecessors as leader of the New Democrats, a man named Tommy Douglas, knew that this was wrong. That this ran counter to the values of Canadians. To correct this injustice Tommy and my party set out a vision in which everyone received the health care they needed regardless of their income. And so, in 1947 in the prairie province of Saskatchewan, Tommy tabled the first piece of legislation that set us on the path to universal health insurance in Canada. And while many take it for granted today, Tommy and his supporters fought a decades-long battle to usher in Canadian medicare.

There were opponents every step of the way. Sometimes it was small business, other times it was the big corporations. Sometimes it was the patient groups, other times it was the doctor groups.

In 1961 when Tommy and my party launched Canada's first public health-care program in Saskatchewan, those vested interests responded with fury – doctors even went on strike! In an attempt to block change, those doctors left sick women, men and children without care. Leaving communities in desperate and dire need. But the hard-working women and men of Saskatchewan knew what was right. After just three weeks, under sustained public pressure, the doctors strike collapsed.

For the first time, health care was a right and not a privilege. For the first time, accidents and illness wouldn't condemn families to poverty. For the first time, the health of Canadian families was put before profits, and by 1984 the Canada Health Act secured a national public health-care system that has since become part of our Canadian identity. That's because it reflects our values of equality and shared responsibility, but also because the Canadian health-care system works.

This Easter I had both knees operated on. I saw a doctor of my choice, quickly got an MRI and just a few short weeks later – it was elective surgery – I had the operation and was on the mend. My credit card stayed in my wallet – I just had to show my Canadian medicare card.

So take it from me – public health care was worth the fight, and for Canadians, it's worth fighting to keep it strong. Americans should know that when the battle begins here in earnest once again. It'll be dirty, it'll get nasty and victory isn't certain.

The battle lines have already been drawn. President Obama has thrown down the gauntlet and put a viable plan on the table – one that will cover the 46 million Americans without health insurance, and stop medical bills from being the most common source of bankruptcy in America. His grassroots campaign begins in earnest in just three days, and people across America are filled with hope that change will come.

But progressive leaders and the American people will need to be united in their resolve, because the forces of the vested interests are gathering against change that's in the public interest. And they're sowing the seeds of fear with myths and lies about Canadian health care.

Here's the truth: Canada and the U.S. spend about the same on public health care – around 7 per cent of GDP according to the OECD. But in Canada public health care covers everyone and in the States it covers just one-third of the population. In fact, when you add in the costs of private care, Canada spends 10 per cent of GDP on health care and the U.S. spends 16 per cent. That's $2,500 less per capita – and in Canada everyone is covered!

Canada does well on quality of care, too. Maybe you've seen those TV ads with Canadian private care promoter Dr. Brian Day saying – quote – "patients are dying as they wait for care in Canada." That's simply not the case. In fact – half of acute care patients are seen within six minutes in emergency. And for much elective surgery, like knee and hip replacements in Ontario, there are no longer wait lists. Wait times don't go away in a private system, but they are reduced by better practices like surgeons working in teams, as programs in many provinces have proved.

The truth is that Canadian health outcomes are excellent. The public data is very clear: From infant mortality to healthy life expectancy to injury recovery, Canada outperforms the United States. Satisfaction rates are high too – 85 per cent of Canadians are "very" or "somewhat satisfied" with the service they receive.

Our system is founded on equality. That equality ensures everyone receives good health care, and good care in turn means a better chance in life, it means more equality and opportunity in Canada. What the advocates of for-profit health care in Canada are doing is putting wealth before the health of their patients. You know, when the admitting nurse checks your credit card balance before your pulse, you're as far away from patient-centred care as you can get. And to the vast majority of Canadians, that's simply not fair.

The Canadian health-care system isn't perfect, but it works. And today America desperately needs a health-care system that works here, too. I believe that with resolve, united purpose and bold vision that you'll get it. You will – finally – have a health-care system that shares the best of your values. A public health-care system that works for the American people.

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Spending on health care is good for the economy – it's a win-win. Right now, the Canadian health-care system gives businesses a competitive advantage. In the United States, health care is so costly that companies are being forced to choose between shareholder returns and care for their employees.

General Motors U.S.A. spends $10,000 every minute on health care. That's $5 billion a year. It costs General Motors Canada $8 less per hour per employee to do business simply because Canada has a public health-care system. Health-care costs in the United States have contributed to the crippling of the auto sector, and reducing health-care costs through the economy will boost the American economy overall.