is not accounting differences at all: - Europeans (and I am one) live in tiny housing even compared to people in NYC. - we have less cars (you can claim it's due to public transport but if public transport is not available most people would not afford cars regardless. - overall less leisure expenditures and less disposable income.

That 10k doctor is a myth and certainly not something the 100k developer will have to pay. That's covered by his company. Healthcare is an issue in US when you're at the bottom of the food chain.