What do you Americans pay for health care asked by UK man.?

Question

I have seen quite a few questions from American people asking about UK health care but what does it cost in the USA to get health care.

What do you pay a month/year
Do you get seen straight away, because you pay is your health care the best on this bases.

How do you get on if you cant aford health care insurance and you are poor.

Answer 1

There is such a wide variety of healthcare plans here in the US. I work for a really good employer in the healthcare industry and I pay $702 US dollars a year for my insurance for 1 person. My co-pay (what I have to pay everytime I see a doctor or fill a prescription for meds) is $20. That is considered a really good plan. The reason you hear so much complaining in the US is that so many people have poor plans or cannot afford health insurance at all. It not uncommon for a family to pay $3000 a year plus have $50 co-pays. I am able to see a doctor really quick, if I were flexible I could probably make an appointment tomorrow. Hope that gives you some info.

Answer 2

Health care is quite varied here. Wealthy people can pay for their care "out of pocket," meaning they can afford to pay cash, and as much as it costs. Of course they search for the best doctors. Even they will buy health insurance from insurance companies to defray the costs.

The middle class must either somehow manage to buy health insurance, or work at jobs that provide it.

The poorest people do not have health insurance, but are often cared for by public agencies. Those agencies are run by a variety of governments: city, county, state and a bit of contribution from the federal government. So how much those services cover vary from agency to agency. Some people, who have jobs but no insurance, are required to pay a "co-pay." That's a part of the costs determined by a formula the agency determines. The poorest pay anything from no costs to basic minimums the agency determines. These agencies try to recover their costs by reporting the patient to credit bureaus, causing the patient even more financial distress.

What anyone pays is determined by how much medical attention they need. So, if, for example, they don't get sick for a couple of years, it might only cost what the policy costs for each year. That varies from one insurance company to another.

I happen to have had an "HMO," or Health Maintenance Organization for most of my life. The premiums are paid by the employer, and the patient pays from nothing to $5 (a US dollar is about 50% of a pound.) After I retired -from 20 years of work for my city- I learned my benefits did not include any medical coverage, and my monthly check would be $469 a month. It's up to $508 a month, now that it's been 5 years since I retired. So I use one of the public agency medical systems. I don't pay for doctor's visits, but every medicine I need (about 30) costs me $5.

Answer 3

Health care rates vary by where you work, the insurance provider they provide, the number of people in your family, and how much your employer contributes. I am a single 24 year old woman and I used to pay about $75/mo for insurance plus a $10-20 copay for office visits and varying fees for perscriptions ($10 to over $100). Emergency room visits add up really quickly... my dad was helping me move and cut his finger badly and needed stitches. That cost him over $500 for the simple procedure.
Hope this gives you some idea.

If you can't afford insurance you are basically out of luck. There are some state programs you can apply for if you meet a certain level of poverty and other regulations. I don't have insurance now and I'm crossing my fingers I don't get sick or hurt.

Hope this helps.

Answer 4

It cost way to much. To many people want to get rich off your pain. They don't have full health coverage like they do in UK but we don't pay that huge tax you do either. They should charge a fair amount tax for full coverage health care here but they don't because they won't be making stupid ed amounts of money off of the sick and dieing. And they might teach doctors more then 2 weeks nutrition preventive health as they only teach that much now. They need us sick and buying there drugs till we die so they can maximize they're profits.

Answer 5

.Hello Russell
A great question and on that a great number of U.S. Legislators should be answering but , as government employees , they have excellent benefits (life long)

As a Citizen of the most highly developed "industrialized " Nation on the planet, one would have to wonder why 45 million (of 300 million) are without health insurance completely
and a great proportion of those remaining, health and welfare, hangs in the balance: Catastrophic Health costs remains the number one cause of personal bankruptcy, in this Country.

Although we spend 2 to 5 times, per capita than most European Countries and Canada, we do not even meet one half of the chronic health care goals/standards posed by the World Health Organization: Not even high blood pressure.

Our health care and pharmaceutical costs escalate far above the average cost of living increase ( around 3%) to from 7-12% per year.( unchecked )

I am a health care provider and pay 1/2 of my personal health plan cost ( $450 of $900/ month--it is income tax sheltered)): My per perscription co-pays range from $10-$70: Per clinic visit is $10 and I must pay the first $2,500 "out of pocket" for hospitlazation/ year. Based upon a recent, national survey, health care insurance premiums, will increase by 35% in the part of the Country where I live.

We have no national health policy, for the "poor" or those falling below a "poverty level" (about $12,000 yr/family). The Federal Government doles out what ever funds that they deem appropriate, from year to hear, and each individual State (50) adminsteres these "medical assistance" programs as they see fit, with some basic Federal Guidelines (Rules).There is no uniformity and typically available only to children, parents of depent children whose income qualifies and for the long term disable (mental and physical)
The State that I live in, provides coverage, through private health care groups (HMO's and PPO's) on a sliding fee scale as calculated from income.,if you are unable to afford private insurance or are not elligable through your empolyer. (not every State is as interested as Minnesota)

Itis of a great amount of interest that, "administrators" (CEO's) of the private, little regulated "managed plans" take home, in excess of $1+ million/year as do most Hospital Administrators ( CEO's).....This pattern, generally subscribes to present U.S. division of labor economics where-as many CEO's "earn" eight times what the basic "line" worker makes /year.

Of course, our NativeAmericans and Military Veterans have their own seperate "systems" although some get their services in the "private sector". Health care of our Elderly is a National embarrassment: Medicare as evolving from our post 1920's depression era, requires payments, co-pays, and caps on services and reimbursements: They are often left with the decision to dedicate funds for food and basic neccessities or to take their medications.

One has to wonder who is going to step forward, in our Government, toface of against these "big money" interests that block reform: It is glaring that a National (Universal) Plan would bring us into a % 9 of Gross National Product cost of health care that most of Europe enjoys while we are paying %16, and climbing.( Hillary Clinton tried some 15 years ago)

Oh yes, illegal immigrants and hostile terrorists recieve free healthcare: So if you visit, do it illegally.

Our latest answer is to mandate everyone, who can afford it) to by private health care insurance and use this to offset all of the "free care" currently being provided (where, when ??)
Simply, slight of hand but that is the way our Elected Representatives treat us and 25% of Americans, truely believe that the sun revolves around the earth.........................................Help !!!!!