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How much do Americans actually pay for healthcare? (pawb.social)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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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?

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[–] [email protected] 20 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (5 children)

It cost us almost $4000 to have our first kid and we have pretty damn good (the premiums were not insignificant either) healthcare. No complications, no surprises, typical short hospital stay (like 3 days).

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Was that pre ACA? When we had our kid, we only paid a $175 hospital stay copay. Granted… we’re very lucky with the insurance coverage provided by my employer, but we were under the understanding that the reason we didn’t have OBGYN copays and otherwise throughout the pregnancy was because the ACA made sure it was covered.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

2018 major private university insurance! Kind of wild tbh still. When I saw the bill I asked my partner to see how much was pulled from their paycheck each month and to show me their plan. I made adjustments since we definitely were not getting good value so I at least wanted more cash on our pocket.

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