Ask Lemmy

26701 readers

3681 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions

Please don't post about US Politics.

Rules: (interactive)

1) Be nice and; have fun

Doxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them

2) All posts must end with a '?'

This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?

3) No spam

Please do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.

4) NSFW is okay, within reason

Just remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either [email protected] or [email protected]. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].

5) This is not a support community.

It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email [email protected]. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.

Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.

Partnered Communities:

Logo design credit goes to: tubbadu

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

[email protected]

240

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

submitted 2 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

223 comments fedilink hide all child comments

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?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] [email protected] 18 points 2 months ago (2 children)

Currently $1700/mo for a very healthy, young, family of three. That comes with a $5000 deductible per person (or maximum out-of-pocket of $13000 for the family).

Oversimplification, but we basically pay $33,400 per year before insurance kicks in to cover costs.

That’s ridiculous, yes. But my last uninsured trip to the ER was for an unbearable stomach pain. The 4 hour visit consisted of a shot of pain killer, a scan that showed nothing, and observation by a couple of nurses during that time. I got a RX for some chalky pill and was told to cut back on NSAIDS and alcohol. Fair enough.

The bill from the hospital was $16,000 for the bed, nurses, and scan. Then there were separate bills for the radiologist and the ER doctor, and some lab work bringing the total to ~$17,500.

I currently do not have insurance because I cannot afford it. People treat me like I’m crazy for being overly cautious about getting COVID-19, but without insurance , I could easily go bankrupt if I get it.

American healthcare is truly awful.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 months ago

that is insane... I had diverticulitis and had a ER visit also here in chile... RX and everything I think the total account was something like 250 usd... of which I paid maybe 30 usd because of my health coverage plan... how can it be 50 times more expensive ?? I pay 80 usd for my plan monthly.