I had a health crisis in France

Re:I had a health crisis in France by knz on Sunday November 20, 2016 @02:58PM (#13000819)

To give some context to the cost - between my employer and I, a family plan (the options are single or family) was $14,400 for 2017. That's a high deductible plan that requires us to pay the first $6,000 before insurance pays anything.

Back in my native New Zealand, the total income tax for an average household is about $6,000 USD. $14,000 just for insurance vs $6,000 for "free" healthcare and all of the other infrastructure a country needs.

The US healthcare system is a joke. A joke that wastes money and costs lives.

I took my kid to the doctor recently and a 15 minute appointment was $250. It doesn't cost $1,000/hour for a doctor to do a routine exam.

Part of the problem is the US is that the actual cost of insurance is buried in your benefits so people think that the $200/month they pay is the cost of insurance.

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Re:I had a health crisis in France by snotrockets on Sunday November 20, 2016 @07:39PM (#13002228)

The $250 bill isn't for the 15 minutes you spent with the Dr, but for the 15+ years he spent in med school and residency.

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Re:I had a health crisis in France by knz on Sunday November 20, 2016 @08:36PM (#13002422)

$1,000/hour is over $2 million/year for a 40 hour work week. Google tells me that a GP makes about $200,000/year here in Minnesota.

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