That's not what I'm talking about. I'm saying you can't just compare costs straight across by looking at taxes vs. premiums because in the health care system here there are a number of hidden costs.
I had a friend who broke his arm. The emergency room doctor wouldn't touch him until the family provided some cash.
If you have to provide extra bedding, food and toiletries for a hospital stay on your own - those costs aren't reflected in the taxes that one pays for health care.
This has nothing to do with debating the merits about either system, I'm purely talking about trying to accurately compare the costs.
I'm asking seriously: how much cash? Couple hundred bucks?
The system you describe is obviously corrupt, and I sympathize with the frustration, but I might prefer a system where I had to spiff doctors a couple bills to get an arm set over a system where I could be both insured and bankrupted by minor surgery that happened to snag a loophole in my policy. That's the private market insurance system we have in the US.
I'm not sure what he payed and that was a while ago. Most Americans that I know in Hungary, when they need something done they go to Austria.
I lived in the US most of my life. The health care system there is pretty messed up - in my opinion. But when I moved to Hungary I realized I'd been quite naive about how things are here.
I assumed it was a rather cut and dry fact that health care would be better here - and it isn't as simple as I had assumed.
I had a friend who broke his arm. The emergency room doctor wouldn't touch him until the family provided some cash.
If you have to provide extra bedding, food and toiletries for a hospital stay on your own - those costs aren't reflected in the taxes that one pays for health care.
This has nothing to do with debating the merits about either system, I'm purely talking about trying to accurately compare the costs.