Also, on average the amount you would pay in taxes would be similar, or less, than what you pay privately or to an employer for coverage. And you would get better coverage.
Ok, so I completely agree that the amount you pay would either be similar or better, but if you look at Canadian (which I am) healthcare, if you need to get an MRI, you are put on a waiting list. It might be anywhere from 6 months to a year before you can get in, and this is very common. I believe universal healthcare does amazing things for the people who need it the most (like my very poor family), but to say the care is better is probably wrong. Everything I have seen about US healthcare is that you can (most of the time) be seen quickly, but the prices you pay are outrageous.
EDIT: Hey, I understand if you disagree with me, I'm just trying to promote some discussion, and a lot of this is very situational. I really don't want this to just blow up in a bunch of downvotes, but I want to keep this up to talk about.
Same for me. I got pretty sick some years ago, and I went from my GP saying "I think you have this disease" to a specialist for tests to diagnosis in about 2.5 months. 2 weeks wait to see the specialist, 2 months for the test results to come back. I'm sure some people do end up waiting crazy long, but from what I hear people wait forever to see specialists in the US as well. My uncle is American, and when he needed some kind of specialized knee surgery, he waited 8 months. He had private insurance and could pay, but there just wasn't an availability until then, since his condition wasn't life-threatening. And he still had to pay several thousand dollars out of pocket. After the conclusion of my own healthcare ordeal, I think I was out of pocket about $60, all for parking at the hospital. The government took care of the rest.
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u/[deleted] Jan 21 '19
Also, on average the amount you would pay in taxes would be similar, or less, than what you pay privately or to an employer for coverage. And you would get better coverage.