Hey all, I’m British so I don’t really know the ins and outs of the US healthcare system. Apologies for asking what is probably a rather simple question.
So like most of you, I see many posts and gofundmes about people having astronomically high medical bills. Most recently, someone having a $27k bill even after his death.
However, I have an American friend who is quick to point out that apparently nobody actually pays those bills. They’re just some elaborate dance between insurance companies and hospitals. If you don’t have insurance, the cost is lower or removed entirely. Supposedly.
So I’m just asking… How accurate is that? Consider someone without insurance, a minor physical ailment, a neurodivergent mind and no interest in fighting off harassing people for the rest of their life.
How much would such a person expect to pay, out of their own pocket, for things like check ups, x rays, meds, counselling and so on?
Like the whole stress of needing to pay anything if needing medical help… If I would avoid that, it is worth even a bigger monthly pay.
Like, in Berlin I can just walk to a doctor, to a hospital or to a pharmacy, plug my insurance card to a machine and it is all settled. I never see any money changing hands, or at maximum 10 euros copay if getting expensive prescription drugs.
Completely removing the stress of having a huge bill suddenly is worth the money I put into the insurance every month.
Oh totally agree with you. Our system is sooooo dumb. Plus, this is all just the payments for the actual healthcare and how it interacts with my insurance. This does not include the insurance premiums I pay every paycheck.
I spend all of this on top of my insurance premiums.