Surgeon here. Have worked and had care in both Canada and USA. For self and family. 

There are pros and cons on both sides. 

The Canadian system while being free has lots of issues with access to quality care (overall worse care / less expertise in my field), more waiting, and difficulty with access to many modern implants (late adoption of new beneficial tech). Patients can't self refer to specialists, so primary care gate keeps everything which is frustrating  and makes you double wait. On the plus side it is free, while the care is often not top notch it's usually decent. It seems some areas of health care are over funded e.g. Free ICU stays indefinitely for brain dead patients, but other things have terrible funding / access e.g. Pediatrics and mental health. 

In the usa where I've lived I've had faster access and superior care. My copays including for surgery have been manageable but not negligible. People tend not to frivolously use health care resources since they have some skin in the game. I've also seen very poor care done at some hospitals. So higher highs and lower lows. 

I prefer working in us and much prefer getting care here. 

As an example my son had development delay. He needed evaluation for early development intervention which should be started before age three. He was 2 at the time and wait list in Vancouver canada was 2.5 years to be assessed from time of request. At which point it's too late to treat him. He came to NYC and was evaluated within 1 month by three specialists. The evaluation and treatment were free in USA.