BootsnAll Travel Community

Hello,

I have two easy questions for any American's out there.

One:

Whenever you watch an American TV show (I love so many), they would have you believe that no one ever says 'goodbye' at the end of a conversation? (In the UK, mainly with Family, the goodbyes go on forever.) Is this true?

Two: On average, how much is health insurance? (I don't want to debate the rights or wrongs of health care here, just interested in a basic figure). In the UK we pay health insurance through our monthly salaries - we have no choice but to pay National Insurance.

I know in the US there are grades of insurance, but what is an average monthly amount?

Cheers,

Dante

Not really sure how to respond to the first question so I'll just deal with the health insurance question. The US health care system is so difficult and confusing it's like trying to explain particle physics to a five year old. What people pay can depend on so many factors. I'll just give you a few examples from my own life.

When I worked for the US government, I paid about $50 a month for my health insurance. My employer - the US government - kicked in an additional $200-300 a month. But...and this is an important point...that doesn't mean that going to the doctor was free. For example, any time I went to the doctor for a routine doctor visit, I'd have to pay $20 to the doctor's office. So even those fortunate people who have health insurance often need to pay additional money out of pocket any time they see the doctor.

Second example. After I quit my job with the US government I purchased a policy on my own. This policy only cost me $65 a month. But....the insurance company didn't pay a dime until I had spent $5000 out of my own pocket.

Make sense???

Thanks for the EMH, that's great.

As to the first question, a silly one I know, but if you watch any American series, people in it never say goodbye at the end of telephone conversations, they just hang up, and at times it seems to be mid conversation. I was just wondering if that was really the case, no goodbyes.

At present, I work for the City of New York and I don't pay a cent for my health insurance, and my wife is covered as well. All doctor visits are free as well, provided they're approved by my "primary care physician." Unfortunately for me, this will change in September when I revert to part-time status at the university (not my choice). After that I think it will still be free for me, but doctor visits will be $15. As far as my wife is concerned, we're both hoping she finds a job with insurance by that point.

As far as your other question is concerned, I always say "good-bye" or something like that at the end of phone conversations and am pretty sure almost everyone does. It's quite rude not to. I never noticed that about American TV shows -- I'll have to look next time I watch TV.

Most Americans will say goodby at the end of a conversation when they are leaving. In my case, at the end of getting together with family or friends that I only see once or twice a year, or less, they can go on for hours.

I teach in Florida, and each of the 30 plus counties has a different health plan. I pay nothing for health insurance as the employee, but pay a 'copay' for each visit ($30 for my primary physician, $40 for a walkin clinic, $100 for a hospital). Those with families pay about $400 a month to cover the others.

I know in the US there are grades of insurance, but what is an average monthly amount?

Our country is so large that what is the norm in California isn't even close to that in Florida, so there isn't a fair nationwide average of anything relating to money- even petro costs vary by as much as fifty cents from state to state.

Gotta go, got a plane to catch - off to India today.

I think they do it on TV shows, but in reality we definitely say goodbye and stuff.. i think Americans tend to be fairly polite..

As far as health insurance I'm covered 100% for anything and everything but that's because I work for the government.. not sure what my husband or kids would get if I had them..

my mother pays like, 300$ a month with a 5000$ deductible which is very expensive.

quote:

Originally posted by Dharker:
Hello,

I have two easy questions for any American's out there.

One:

Whenever you watch an American TV show (I love so many), they would have you believe that no one ever says 'goodbye' at the end of a conversation? (In the UK, mainly with Family, the goodbyes go on forever.) Is this true?

Two: On average, how much is health insurance? (I don't want to debate the rights or wrongs of health care here, just interested in a basic figure). In the UK we pay health insurance through our monthly salaries - we have no choice but to pay National Insurance.

I know in the US there are grades of insurance, but what is an average monthly amount?

Cheers,

Dante

Ha, love your questions.

For the first - I suppose this varies depending on what part of the country you're in. But up here in Minnesota, I would say most people say "Goodbye" or "See you later" or (for me) "Well, I've got to go now, nice talking to you, I'll see you later".

Second - That's a good question. As a student not having a large personal income, I pay very little for my health insurance, about $4 / month for a state-funded program. The majority of people, I'm guessing, get health insurance as a work benefit, so I can't tell you how much it costs for them, but I think it's a lot more expensive than in the UK. I've heard some ridiculous amounts before, though.

Interesting questions

Re: goodbyes - I usually say a quick "bye" when I leave anyone, family or friends...

Re: insurance - I work for a private company in Florida and pay $86 a month BUT it is a HSA (Health Savings Plan) with a $1000 deductible...kicker is, my employer FUNDED the plan (paid the $1000 for all of their employees). Apparently it was still more cost effective than a typical insurance plan. So, basically I pay the $86 a month and don't pay another dime for anything else. It's pretty sweet compared to some other companies I've worked for...

Hey Dharker,
I've noticed that too about the American TV shows. It always cracks me up - they'll finish their sentence, turn & walk away...or they're on the phone, finish a sentence & hang up, & apparently the person on the other end is supposed to know when the conversation is over...LOL. I guess that's how it's done in TV land But I think for the most part, Americans usually say a "goodbye" of some sort. And with my family & friends, it can be quite lengthy too.

Jen

What a funny observation about telephone calls on American television. Never noticed, but I'll venture a guess as to why they rarely include goodbyes: Economy. Script writers may need a phone call to advance the story, but they're rarely interesting (to watch). Writers want to keep it as short as possible so they can return to that side-splitting comedy or riveting drama.

In real life, people say good bye.

If you happen to be self-employed, the cost of health insurance in the US will make you want to put a gun to your head. Especially if you're old like me.

quote:

If you happen to be self-employed, the cost of health insurance in the US will make you want to put a gun to your head. Especially if you're old like me.

Actually, being self-employed, once I take into consideration the tax deduction, health insurance really doesn't cost me all that much. Then again I am not old like NTFT so my rates are reasonable.

Being old is definitely the real bitch about health insurance in the USA. It basically ensures many non-government employed individuals will not be retiring early. They'll have to work so they can get health insurance via their company as they would otherwise not be able to afford the health insurance premiums.

I don't plan on being, old and self-employed in the USA. I'll be getting some Australia funded health care by then

As usual, halfnine is correct. I forgot about the deduction.

quote:

Originally posted by Dharker:
In the UK we pay health insurance through our monthly salaries - we have no choice but to pay National Insurance.

Sorry for the off topic here. Just wanted to say that in the UK we do not pay health insurance through our monthly salaries. Healthcare on the NHS is free, regardless of age or employment.

The National Insurance you mention is not directly related to healthcare. National Insurance entitles you to certain benefits including Jobseeker's Allowance, Incapacity Benefit (if you can't work for long periods due to illness or injury) and State Pension among others.

In the past I applied for Incapacity benefit but could not get it because, for complicated reasons, I did not have enough National Insurance credits.

Wouldn't you be funding national healthcare through your taxes? So it seems free, but someone is paying for it?

re: goodbyes...I have never noticed this, but now I will watch for it. But we definitely say goodbye here. On the odd times that I have forgotten to say bye, I will get a call back about my attitude or if something's wrong of if we got cut off. Goodbye/Ciao/Adios/etc. are signals to end the conversation.

Re: healthcare.
If you are self-employed, and can GET insurance, that is great. I was recently contracting and was denied coverage. That is the real kicker. I could have afforded it, but the insurance company wouldn't have me. And I am not that old and not that unhealthy. Most employer-sponsored programs cover you regardless of pre-existing conditions.

Trying to understand the US healthcare situation will make you want to bang your head against a wall. It makes little to no sense, even when you have to deal with it every day.

Anniebanannie is correct. I've often said that if you were going to sit down and design a health care system from scratch, there's no way you could design the US system. It's just not possible.

She's also correct that for people without employer-sponsored health care, getting insurance can be a problem. I had a serious illness back in 2005. I was treated and have had no problems since. But when I return from my travels, will any insurance company take me on? I'm not sure. And if they do, I'm sure I'll have to pay a large monthly sum. Some States do allow you to buy into what's called a high-risk pool. I was on that in California. Cost about $250-300 a month. Downside is that the benefits were capped at $100,000 a year which isn't a whole lot in the US, particularly for someone with health issues.

Oh, and for those people who are saying they don't pay a dime for health insurance because their employer pays it, think again. No doubt your employer factored that in when deciding how much to pay you. You may not know how much you're paying but you're definitely paying in the sense of a reduced salary.

quote:

Originally posted by Craze_b0i:

quote:

Originally posted by Dharker:
In the UK we pay health insurance through our monthly salaries - we have no choice but to pay National Insurance.

Sorry for the off topic here. Just wanted to say that in the UK we do not pay health insurance through our monthly salaries. Healthcare on the NHS is free, regardless of age or employment.

The National Insurance you mention is not directly related to healthcare. National Insurance entitles you to certain benefits including Jobseeker's Allowance, Incapacity Benefit (if you can't work for long periods due to illness or injury) and State Pension among others.

In the past I applied for Incapacity benefit but could not get it because, for complicated reasons, I did not have enough National Insurance credits.

You're pretty much right, I didn't mean UK National insurance pays for health care in the same way as in the US. Part of our taxes overall pay for health care, but you can't say this part of your tax goes on it specifically like in the US.

quote:

I'll be getting some Australia funded health care by then

you're kidding me someone thinks our health system is viable...

of course even reading this thread I still do not get the US health system.

I just know I pay for medicare (which covers anyone in an emergency) and private health and still pay a sh*t load if I dare to go to a doctor let alone a hospital.

I'd pay even more if I didn't have healthcare and it was 'exactly' defined as an emergency.

Still the horror stories of the american health system make me pay my travel insurance premiums even if I am going to somewhere like the US.

interesting thread.

quote:

quote:

I'll be getting some Australia funded health care by then

you're kidding me someone thinks our health system is viable...

No, just the lesser of two evils

A way that many Americans keep their out-of-pocket medical costs down is thru what a lot of employers offer as a "cafeteria plan". (It's not "cafeteria" like the big place in elementary school where you got fish sticks from the lunch lady).

You estimate what you think you're out-of-pocket costs may be for an upcoming year. You divide that number by 12 (12 months) to figure out what, per month, that will be, and arrange for it to be deducted from your paycheck and put into an account from which you're "reimbursed" for them. "Reimbursed" meaning you're paying yourself back out of what you've set aside. You're not "losing" money by doing this...you'd be paying it anyways. The really cool thing is that since it's deducted from your paycheck PRE-taxes, it lowers your taxable income..that is, it makes it look like you make less money, and therefore, making less money, you pay less taxes.

What can kinds of things can you set aside for this? TONS! You can deduct childcare/day-care expenses. Think you might be buying a new set of glasses next year? Think on what your vision plan won't cover & set that aside. You can set aside the cost of some piece of durable medical equipment you may have to spend money on. You think of the doctors you're going to see and the co-payments you'll make (a co-payment is what the person pays for an office visit, usually around $10/20/50 bucks). All that little stuff adds up. The "cafeteria plan" is a great perk that many employers in the U.S. offer, that they'll say not as many employees take advantage of to the fullest extent to which it can really save a perosn some $$$.

You had me totally confused, Skye. But then I caught on that you're talking about an FSA (Flexible Spending Account). I've never heard them referred to as "cafeteria plans."

But, I must say...reading this thread makes me want to beat my head against the wall. American healthcare is fucking confusing.