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?
The real truth of what happens is substantially more complicated due to America being made of 50 states. The medical debt numbers are highly debatable (Related Snopes) and do not account for Regional differences. In some states such as New York there are catchalls/emergency funding so that usually anyone making below low six figures can get their bills paid. Other states make collections difficult such as New Jersey not allowing reporting to credit agencies, making ignoring a debt kind of a non-issue. Then there are states such as Florida that require the barest of insurance to keep rates low and provide no patient protections, so when an accident does occur out of pocket costs can be huge as your insurance covers nothing. In all these events the Hospital assumes that big pocket insurance is paying first so they break out the expensive menu, when they realize they can’t get blood from a stone they are grateful if you cover their wholesale price.
Funny you should mention New York actually, that’s where my friend lives so I guess it explains why he thinks it’s not that bad.
Thanks for the reality check. It’s definitely a horrendous situation to have a for-profit medical sector, whatever the exact figures are.