GOP Sen. Rand Paul is heading to Canada for a hernia operation. Don't call it 'socialized medicine.'


Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is heading to a clinic in Ontario, Canada, next week for an outpatient hernia operation, his lawyers revealed in a court filing. But the libertarian-leaning Republican isn't suddenly embracing Canadian socialized medicine. The Shouldice Hernia Hospital "is a private, world-renowned hospital separate from any system and people come from around the world to pay cash for their services," Paul spokeswoman Kelsey Cooper said in a statement. The senator's chief strategist, Doug Stafford, also pushed back at the idea on Twitter, saying the expedition north is "literally the opposite of socialized medicine."
"While the U.S. and Canada are often portrayed as having opposing health systems — one private, one public, the reality is more nuanced," Politico notes. "Canada also offers some for-profit services, while the U.S. has federal health insurance programs."
The upcoming operation was revealed in a civil lawsuit Paul has filed against his neighbor Rene Boucher, who tackled him last year, breaking several of Paul's ribs, in what Boucher described as a dispute over yard clippings. Boucher pleaded guilty to assaulting a member of Congress and was fined $10,000 and given 30 days in prison, but Paul is also suing him for "physical pain and mental suffering." A jury trial for that civil suit is scheduled to begin later this month in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and the jury is likely to award Paul more than the $5,000 to $8,000 he's expected to pay for his hernia procedure in Canada.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Crossword: June 23, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
-
How far would Russia go for Iran?
Today's Big Question US air strikes represent an 'embarrassment, provocation and opportunity' all rolled into one for Vladimir Putin
-
Anshu Ahuja's golden coconut and butter bean curry recipe
The Week Recommends Plump, creamy beans in a sweet, spicy sauce
-
Trump's LA deployment in limbo after court rulings
Speed Read Judge Breyer ruled that Trump's National Guard deployment to Los Angeles was an 'illegal' overreach. But a federal appellate court halted the ruling.
-
Marines, National Guard in LA can detain Americans
speed read The troops have been authorized to detain anyone who interferes with immigration raids
-
Trump vows 'very big force' against parade protesters
Speed Read The parade, which will shut down much of the capital, will celebrate the US Army's 250th anniversary and Trump's 79th birthday
-
Smithsonian asserts its autonomy from Trump
speed read The DC institution defied Trump's firing of National Portrait Gallery Director Kim Sajet
-
Trump sends Marines to LA, backs Newsom arrest
speed read California Gov. Gavin Newsom is filing lawsuits in response to Trump's escalation of the federal response to ICE protests
-
Trump foists National Guard on unwilling California
speed read Protests erupted over ICE immigration raids in LA county
-
Supreme Court lowers bar in discrimination cases
speed read The court ruled in favor of a white woman who claimed she lost two deserved promotions to gay employees
-
Trump-Musk relationship implodes in taunts, threats
speed read Musk said Trump's multitrillion bill would cause a recession and accused the president of involvement with Jeffrey Epstein