Not sure what State you chose or the age of the 2 adults but $5K is not the max one could pay. Kaiser estimate for my wife and I was $11,949. We currently pay $364/month, or $4368/year. I guess I'll have to trade to lose $$$ in 2014, offset some of her income so we can maybe get a subsidy.
Yes, eat crap, get morbidly obese, and let someone else pay for it. It's the American way...according to some senseless non-American.
Cost variation is the pure definition of free market pricing. Health care is not free market, most of it is third party pays. If the patient were able to negotiate his price, like insurance companies, and the patient was able to pocket the savings, health care costs would drop. Hospitals invoice at very high rates because insurance companies have deep discount programs when it comes to paying the bills.
This gives you an idea of what free market forces could do for healthcare: http://www.surgerycenterok.com/ Another example is Lasik surgery. It's out of the gov't/third-party loop and prices have dropped since it came out in the 1990s. HSAs may have also moved us in this direction. Unfortunately, we're moving further away from these kind of models under "Affordable" care.
We from Germany just shake our heads upon whats happening in USA. Healthcare insurance for every citizen should be self-evident. Its a shame that one of the richest countries in the world needs to discuss about this.
eu has its own problems. like people not coming out of hospitals (dieing) as there is no money to be spent on them. eu has not a solution. chinese or indian model of medicine is cheap and efficient. but multinationals will not let them spread cheap effective medicine.
So Japan and most of Europe are financially sound? What planet do you live on? In addition, Americans are much more unhealthy. Obesity is much more rampant in the U.S., and it's actually more dangerous than smoking. I just got back from overseas, and many Americans (who literally weigh twice as much as they should) couldn't handle all the walking, stair climbing, etc., that I did. This obesity leads to a host of other issues (back/knee problems at an early age; taking multiple expensive prescriptions for cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc. -- which do very little to increase life expectancy). The Michelle Obama/Bloomberg approach doesn't work, either. New York has gotten considerably fatter since Bloomberg started his anti-big soft drink campaign. What will work is making people pay for their choices. Just before Obamacare passed, I saw an article on how self-employed people dealt with healthcare. Most had HSAs, and most had become much healthier to avoid doctor visits and future diseases. Sadly, Obamacare will only reverse this trend.
i agree with all above,but from time to time i have to drive through poor black neighborhoods in philadelphia to visit some of my relatives.problem is-people in those neighborhoods don't have choice. cause they don't have grocery stores over there. NONE. you can drive MILES through the city and won't find a store that sell fresh fruits or veggies. how about that? we have drones,rovers on mars, pissing money away on s**holes like iran,iraq,pakistan ..all kind of s**t , and no place to buy a fresh veggies in poor neighborhoods.
@DHOHHI - I'm in a similar position - locally, the news people say if you have insurance already - that you don't have to do anything, just keep your old insurance. I think i read somewhere that if you are over 30 - obama won't allow us to keep those high deductible policies. I'm 57, but the $10k deductible makes more sense for me and my family. Anybody know when they will axe high deductible plans for those over 30?