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Comment by rob74 | Hacker News Reader

Apparently... of course, the threat of "mass casualty violence and terrorist attacks" is real, but you're probably still more likely to die in a plane crash while getting to the US (or in a car accident while there) than in a shooting or terrorist attack. And if you insist on only travelling to countries that have a lower level of violent crime than Australia, you probably won't get around much (https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/violent-c...)...

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Oops, you forgot the other 2 travel advisories the author quoted in that part:

- "Violent crime is more common in the US than in Australia"

- "Medical costs in the US are extremely high. You may need to pay up-front for medical assistance"

I think some Americans don't realize that, outside of America, many people don't ever consider the risk of gun violence in their day-to-day lives, or owing thousands of dollars for visiting a hospital.

Actually, I specifically addressed the violent crime thing...

As for the medical costs - if you want to be on the safe side, you can (actually you should) get travel health insurance.

I've heard horror stories about hospitals not accepting insurance. Wouldn't want to be in a situation of being ill and having to pay more than I can earn in a lifetime.

They will accept it. The cover has to be specifically for US hospitals otherwise the insurer won't pay out and they know that and won't accept it. You have to avoid insurers who only cover certain providers as well.

You have to read your insurance contract and info sheet properly rather than go for the lowest price.

> As for the medical costs - if you want to be on the safe side, you can (actually you should) get travel health insurance.

Though you might need to get a US specific one. Mine contains a clause that specifically excludes the USA from coverage, and that’s not uncommon.

Every medical travel insurance I ever bought had a clause that it doesn't work in the US.

To be fair I've been to the US a few times and I've never been shot and I did end up in hospital and it was smooth as butter. Because I didn't hang around where I was likely to get shot and actually checked my insurance cover and had the cert on me.

Note I live in London and everyone tells me I'm going to get stabbed too and die from the pollution...

London's homicide rate is (roughly, depending on which source you use and year you take) about one-fifth of the average US homicide rate; you are safer in London than in almost anywhere in the US.

13 per million per year in London. 60 per million per year in New York.

That's an 0.006% chance of getting murdered killed in NY every year.

And that doesn't account for (a) putting yourself in a good position to get killed like being a gang member and (b) the aggregate reduction in risk by only travelling there.

We don’t actually consider that in the US either, you probably shouldn’t get your views of the US from Reddit or the Guardian.

I know several Americans who consider both of those things.

That second one needs to be pointed out in particular - the US healthcare system is so expensive that if you have healthcare insurance as a foreigner, they're typically excluded from the international plan. You have to specifically go out of your way (and pay more) to make your local health insurance cover the US.

Quite a few people don't want to deal with that.

The homicide rate in Australia is particularly low. But in terms of overall homicide rate the United States is higher than the vast majority of other developed countries, and indeed most developing countries.

Most of the world sees the United States as a dangerous country.

For example, using the source you've just given, the US homicide rate is over 5 times the homicide rate of the United Kingdom, France and Germany, and over 10 times that of Norway.

Granted, you're more likely to die in a car accident than to be murdered in the US, but that's no reassurance; this is partly because the vehicle accident mortality rate is so high in the US, at over four times the rate in the UK. And your comment about dying in a plane crash is completely wrong: the air travel mortality rate is very close to zero, with under 200 deaths for over 800 annual million air travellers; a rate of less than 0.025 per 100,000 per annum.

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