Re:40% of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency expense
by kibwen on Tuesday May 22, 2018 @07:30PM
(#17130337)
The negativity in this thread is justified, and the headline is correct to highlight the darkly absurd desperation of the average citizen's situation. To attempt to look on the bright side here would be analogous to a commenter on a news article in 1918 saying "well, 50,000 people will die of Spanish flu this month, but let's look on the bright side: 75,000 people died last month!"
Furthermore, even the statistic that 40% of people can't cover a $400 expense is lowballing the severity of the situation, because who says that $400 is anywhere near the average financial cost of an unexpected emergency? What percentage of Americans can't cover a $500 expense (we know it's more than 40%)? What about a $1,000 emergency expense (which in my estimation is closer to the median deductible for a health insurance policy (assuming that one has health insurance in the first place))?
Furthermore, even the statistic that 40% of people can't cover a $400 expense is lowballing the severity of the situation, because who says that $400 is anywhere near the average financial cost of an unexpected emergency? What percentage of Americans can't cover a $500 expense (we know it's more than 40%)? What about a $1,000 emergency expense (which in my estimation is closer to the median deductible for a health insurance policy (assuming that one has health insurance in the first place))?