Despite what Michael Moore would have everyone believe, health care in Canada is indeed plagued by waiting lists. And where people need to queue up for health care, some people—people with connections—will jump the queue.

According to the Fraser Institute’s most recent waiting list survey, it took an average of 18 weeks in 2010 for Canadian patients to receive elective treatment from a specialist once referred by a general practitioner. Those referred for orthopedic surgery waited an average of 35 weeks. The wait just to get an MRI is nearly 10 weeks.