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Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by s_dev on Thursday November 26, 2020 @07:24AM (#25219356)
>I'm too European to understand why this makes any sense.

This really reads as "Is this some peasant joke I'm too rich to understand".

Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by kyriee on Thursday November 26, 2020 @07:34AM (#25219441)
No it just means that it’s beyond comprehension. As a Canadian, I feel the same way.

Everything about the American healthcare system feels like a nightmare to me. From the cost, to the fact that it’s usually tied to your employer (!!) and that even if you have good insurance, you have to make sure to get care from “in network” healthcare professionals.

It seems to require a tremendous amount of energy for very little benefit for average citizens.

Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by stefan_ on Thursday November 26, 2020 @07:45AM (#25219520)
My personal favorite was the $2000 copay, like healthcare is the same as car insurance where you might forgo the repair of a dent.
Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by s_dev on Thursday November 26, 2020 @07:39AM (#25219478)
You can understand or not understand something -- it has 0 to do with your nationality. "As a Canadian" is just nonsense. It doesn't bring much to the table.

"As a Canadian doctor" is authority. You often find this with appeals from "As a mother" -- it's just a fallacy.

Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by ryanbrunner on Thursday November 26, 2020 @07:48AM (#25219546)
I don't think this is a very charitable reading. "As a European", "As a Canadian", etc. isn't a statement of authority or a value judgement that makes someone better, it's just stating that they come from a cultural context where this isn't the norm, so it seems bizarre.

Including the cultural context you're viewing things from can be useful so that people can understand where you're coming from.

Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by Jedd on Thursday November 26, 2020 @07:43AM (#25219510)
A reference to feudalism is a bit strange there, but I'll weigh in with the observation that in Australia it's comparably challenging to understand.

I think in almost any western country (and many non-western) 'free' (or close to) healthcare is a basic right of citizenship, so it's extremely difficult to try to comprehend how 20-40% of the average person's salary could be consumed by treating a child's minor accident.

Re:A Kid, a Minor Bike Accident and a $19,000 Medical Bill by pjc50 on Thursday November 26, 2020 @09:22AM (#25220222)
Well, yes. America has a hugely wealthy private sphere for some people, and an impoverished public sphere.