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Comment by vasilipupkin | Hacker News Reader

it's very naive to think that Europeans don't pay for their healthcare. Germans make monthly payments for insurance, etc. Are they that much lower than 1300 a month?

according to posters here, basic insurance is 800 dollars a month. Average net disposable income in Germany is 34K.3 a year http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/countries/germany/

In the US, it's roughly 45K. So, Germans pay less for insurance, but not that much less, considering it as a % of disposable income. And this is for the basic public option. Many Germans pay for private insurance.

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They are much lower, think in the 100 to 150 range. And that's without company discounts if you have a job. On top of that, there is a fixed limited amount you have to pay yourself per year if you actually use it, and everything else is covered.

But they get much better healthcare for that though.

In Germany you make your monthly payments and if you ever need anything, it is very cheap or free. In the US you make the same payments and still pay thousands whenever you need care.

So what is being paid for in the US? In the German system you pay your money, you get your healthcare, in the US system you pay your money so you get the pleasure of being less over-charged when you need your healthcare?

> In the US you make the same payments and still pay thousands whenever you need care.

That's an exaggeration. You make it sound like a definite whenever you go to the doctor here. That's far from accurate. It can happen, and way too often does, though.

in Germany after tax disposable income is lower than in the US and prices for things are generally the same or higher.

naive calculation from an estimated 8% effective rate[0] says a german family making 60,000 would pay 400/month. Additionally however, no deductibles.

[0] https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=919714...

Does that include the employer contribution?

They have Google where I live so we can find out.

https://www.howtogermany.com/pages/healthinsurance.html#gkv

The public opinion which covers you and non working dependants is a reasonable 720 euros or aprox 800 usd or aprox 15% of wages whichever is less.

720 euros a month as a % of after tax income is higher in Germany than 1300 in the US ? also, not clear what that public option covers exactly and how many people buy additional private insurance because public option is inadequate? https://www.handelsblatt.com/today/politics/handelsblatt-exp...

720 euros or 15% whichever is less. As I type I'm paying 38% of my income before taxes in health care related expenses. I'd take the German option in a second.

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