I can't imagine the government forcing individual citizens to buy healthcare, just how far down this slippery slope to outright socialism have we come?

Why does this surprise you?

It was Bob Dole's plan for the US.

First of all, Massachusetts health care program is not the same as Canada's.
In Canada every citizen is covered automatically through the state.  

In MA everyone that can afford to buy insurance has to or pays a fine.
   I believe the fine kicks in at $35,000 for an individual.
   If a person has to buy health insurance out right, they can buy it through a state operated marketplace that allows people to buy the plans at the same rate as a large employer.  This is not subsidized.
People that don't earn enough to buy insurance are able to buy a subsidized plan at a rate that is affordable but has limited choices.
   I believe the cap for assistance is $32,500.
   If a person is offered insurance through their employer, and makes under this amount they still do not qualify for assistance

There is a scale that decides if insurance is considered affordable.
Full information can be gotten at  link below.

Second:
The idea behind this program is that if people have to pay for health care, then they will actually go See a doctor more regularly, there by catching problems earlier when costs are cheeper.  
Finding a heart problem and treating it before a heart attack is allot cheaper then after a person has one for example.

Also it cuts down on low income people from getting care for non emergency problems at ER's (where everything costs twice as much) and then not being able to pay.
In the past this was paid for through a health care pool (FreeCare it was called) and the hospitals writing off the losses of people not paying at an escalated rate....
             Hospital billing example (not exact numbers but you get the idea):
                         MRI on Medicare:  $1500
                         MRI with insurance:  $2500
                         MRI without insurance: $6000
              Low income person gets an MRI, the state pool pays $2000 and the hospital writes off the $4000 on their taxes.

So the idea on Romney care (Obama care..  whatever).  Use the health care pool/tax write offs with some extra income to get people insured and too a doctor before they have a major problem that costs more, and keep people that can afford health insurance from tapping into this pool or just walking away from hospital bills.