WM mentioned health care and I have another story to tell.
Did you know that our neighbors to the north amended their original Citizenship Act of 1947 recently? Canada is such a concerned county. They are always worrying that somebody has been left out, or been unfairly treated. Gotta love' em. Some of their neighbors could take a hint! So on April 17, 2009 the qualifications for being a Canadian citizen were changed. Here's the website for a little more information.
The new law states that if you are in the first generation of children born outside Canada to a Canadian citizen AND born after 1947, (there are a couple of other caveats in there too, but nothing major) you are not just eligible to become a Canadian citizen, you ALREADY are one and it is retroactive to your birth date back to 1947 (after the original law).
As far as it concerns MY family; you may remember that my mother was born in Canada and she remained a resident alien in the U.S. right up until she died.
1. I'm not a 2009 restructured Canadian because I was born before 1947. I think if I pursued it through legal channels I qualify, but at this stage of the game, it doesn't matter to me. If I want to visit Canada, I'll just take my U.S. passport and go.
2. It doesn't affect my youngest sister who was born in Canada and is already a duo-national. BTW, neither Canada nor the U.S. have any restrictions about dual citizens in each others countries. Interestingly, since she was born in Canada, her two first generation sons are automatic Canadians too.
3. Middle sister...BINGO! First generation, born in the U.S. in 1953 to a Canadian citizen. After paying some minimal paperwork fees, she will get her Canadian citizenship card and will be eligible for all government programs. That includes their universal health care. They aren't old enough for Medicare and since Sis and her husband have been will-o-the-wisps, going all over the place in their boat and picking up jobs and money while the times were good, they are now between a rock and a hard place, medical insurance-wise. It is a definite possibility that they will be pulling up stakes and moving to the Great White North.
Would it work out for them? I sure don't know.. she is our well-loved, but different-drum-marching sibling. I do know that Canada has loads of programs to get newcomers settled and neither one of them is afraid of hard work. The safety net of medical coverage would certainly be a huge relief to them.
Compare the U.S. 40% uninsured to Canada's 5% and I can certainly see the attraction.
