Conversations with Americans

[fastar1]

Yup, it costs stuff to get stuff.

I think there's a Rodney video on the subject.

 

[promac]

A lot of people in the US work at the job they do, not for the pay or career choice, but for the health insurance benefits. Running into a hospital emergency department for the sniffles is unheard of because of the cost. Here in Canada, it's the norm - a hospital emergency waiting room filled with fairly healthy patients, that could have gone to see a doc in a box instead. Yeah, my wife is American born and raised. When she complained about the birthing and recovery rooms at York Central, I had to say, "you get what you pay for" - LOL! Personally, I think I would have been better off with a $6,000 5-star hospital bill, health insurance premiums, a much lower marginal tax rate, tax deductible mortgage interest and income splitting.

 

[murf]

When Obamacare was being debated I was asked continuously about the healthcare system in Canada and how it compared. Most American's believe that the government decides which doctor you get to see, what treatment you can have, and when etc. When I explained it was basically a single pay system and your doctor decides the treatment plan for you and all the government does is act like a health insurance company and pay the bill they were surprised.

Of course I also heard how we wait months for simple things and many people die waiting... when told the truth they slowly begin to realise how badly they are being manipulated and lied to about the real state of the Canadian healthcare system.

Oh yeah, they try to refer to it as socialist healthcare and I correct them and use the term universal healthcare, then explain the difference. That also sets off another lightbulb in their brain.

As an example of cost, my partner had coverage through his last employer for the two of us. It still required us to pay $25 per visit for the doctor, 20% co-pay (what we had to pay of the total cost), and a deductible of $2500 per year before coverage kicks in; including the employer subsidy the cost was $1,100 a month.

My crap coverage is $300 a month, with that I pay $35 per doctor visit, 40% co-pay and a deductible of $4,000 per year.

I am so ready to move back to Canada, threads like this remind me why.

I found out about people dying in Canadian waiting rooms when I worked in Quebec. Happens quite often there:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montr...ebec-man-dies-in-hospital-emergency-room.html

it really depends what kind of health insurance you get in the USA, my company had some of the best coverage available and they even performed procedures that were not covered in Canada. It really depends.

 

[murf]

The top marginal rate is 46.41%. Then you're looking at another 1.95% (EHT), 4.152% (UI) on up to $43,200 of earnings, 9.9% (CPP) on up to $43,700 earnings and Workers' Comp - God only knows the percentage on up to $77,600 in earnings. If you're lucky enough to have a health benefits plan, you're probably paying at least another 2% of earnings. Yeah, it includes all the tax you don't see on your pay slip.

I just checked:

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/fq/txrts-eng.html

29% for anything made over $128K

 

[nakkers]

I just checked:

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/fq/txrts-eng.html

29% for anything made over $128K

That's only the fed's portion. Provincial income tax makes up the rest. Scroll down the page.....

 

[Chaos]

A lot of people in the US work at the job they do, not for the pay or career choice, but for the health insurance benefits. Running into a hospital emergency department for the sniffles is unheard of because of the cost. Here in Canada, it's the norm - a hospital emergency waiting room filled with fairly healthy patients, that could have gone to see a doc in a box instead. Yeah, my wife is American born and raised. When she complained about the birthing and recovery rooms at York Central, I had to say, "you get what you pay for" - LOL!

The American system is probably the best in the world if you can afford it.

Personally, I think I would have been better off with a $6,000 5-star hospital bill, health insurance premiums, a much lower marginal tax rate, tax deductible mortgage interest and income splitting.

If your wife is American, you can easily do this.

 

[murf]

That's only the fed's portion. Provincial income tax makes up the rest. Scroll down the page.....

yup, 29 +11 is 40% but again that on anything over $128000, so for the majority it's probably 22% + 11% or so 33%. Ofcourse that's wo your deductions and then you have to add sales tax for anything you buy so yes it's significant.

 

[caboose56]

I think there should be user fees for ER's and Walk-In clinics or even your family doctor's office. Something that is not enough to cause you any financial hardship but enough to disuade people with a simple cold from going to the ER. Fees for recurring issues would be waived. I've been to an ER twice in my life. Once after hurling my ZX7R off a 401 offramp to get leg x-rays just to be safe, and again after breaking my collarbone into 4 pieces. I've been to a walk-in clinic maybe half a dozen times.

ER - $100
Walk-In or Doctor's office - $25

Thoughts?

 

[Chaos]

I think there should be user fees for ER's and Walk-In clinics or even your family doctor's office. Something that is not enough to cause you any financial hardship but enough to disuade people with a simple cold from going to the ER. Fees for recurring issues would be waived. I've been to an ER twice in my life. Once after hurling my ZX7R off a 401 offramp to get leg x-rays just to be safe, and again after breaking my collarbone into 4 pieces. I've been to a walk-in clinic maybe half a dozen times.

ER - $100
Walk-In or Doctor's office - $25

Thoughts?

I'm ok with this.

 

[imnothng]

I think there should be user fees for ER's and Walk-In clinics or even your family doctor's office. Something that is not enough to cause you any financial hardship but enough to disuade people with a simple cold from going to the ER. Fees for recurring issues would be waived. I've been to an ER twice in my life. Once after hurling my ZX7R off a 401 offramp to get leg x-rays just to be safe, and again after breaking my collarbone into 4 pieces. I've been to a walk-in clinic maybe half a dozen times.

ER - $100
Walk-In or Doctor's office - $25

Thoughts?

I would be ok with this as well.

I have been to the hospital for myself twice to get two cuts in my head stitched up.

I have taken each of my kids once. My son when he was about 3 because he just kept crying and we couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. He was complaining about his stomach and just screaming in pain. Result, he was constipated.
My girl was about 10 months when she took a header off a bed into the corner of the nightstand. She had a really deep cut on her forehead so we took her in to get stitches. Result was three stitches.
I took my father in law in when he kept falling down one night. Result was he was admitted in after about 20 hours and stayed there for a month before he got into a home. I'm not sure of the cost to us, but we did have to pay something daily.
A friend of my wife's went to Michigan to get the fat band thingy because the wait here was about two years, so OHIP sent her there after about 8 months of waiting.

I wouldn't have it the American way in a million years and with that said I am all for "two-tier" health care. It should be free to everyone with private clinics that people can pay.

 

[caboose56]

I'm not sure about two-tier systems. If implemented properly they could probably work but if implemented with same effectiveness our current system has then i fear they would just end up being an elite upper tier system that only caters to the very wealthy and takes all the best doctors by throwing money at them.

I think that our current system could be much more effective and efficient if it was run properly.. that may be just a pipe dream though. It's the same pit-fall as the two-tier system. IF it could be run properly it would work well.. might be impossible.

Heathlcare is one of my government pet peeves.. I genuinely believe that I could be of great service to this country if I could be granted 100% unquestionable autocratic power for one week. I'd make some changes.

 

[nakkers]

I think there should be user fees for ER's and Walk-In clinics or even your family doctor's office. Something that is not enough to cause you any financial hardship but enough to disuade people with a simple cold from going to the ER. Fees for recurring issues would be waived. I've been to an ER twice in my life. Once after hurling my ZX7R off a 401 offramp to get leg x-rays just to be safe, and again after breaking my collarbone into 4 pieces. I've been to a walk-in clinic maybe half a dozen times.

ER - $100
Walk-In or Doctor's office - $25

Thoughts?

Sounds good if you are single. However, toss in a few kids and it gets ugly fast. I don't take the kids or myself to the hospital often but, walk in clinics hours of operation don't always coincide with the time of an ear ache. Of course, the GTA's walk in clinics are pretty good operation of hours wise but, outside the 905, it's just terrible.