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Cory Said:

Overhaul of the US healthcare system?

We Answered:

Good information - But the answer is
Does this bill make Health Care more affordable - No
Does this bill make Health Care better - No
Does this bill help the economy - No

Yes Health Care is bad in this country, but this bill does nothing to make it better.

This bill does the same things O's other bills do - redistribute wealth and consolidate power for the Democrat Party.

If you read the bill - you will come to the same conclusion.

Irene Said:

Is there need for overhaul of the US healthcare system?

We Answered:

If you've used it, and you are paying for it yourself and aren't in a group plan, I don't even have to look at your sources, I know we need changes.

What bothers me is that we are so close minded about it. That facts that I know from experience are glossed over by those that simply repeat Rush's morning monologue. We believe more in rhetoric than we do in what we know to be true.

Insurance costs too much, isn't practical, doesn't cover what you need.
Young people get sick too, and the costs are astronomical, yet they tend to think of it as an old folks problem. They also think Medicare pays for everything, and they don't understand that a person contributes to it their whole working lives and still needs to pay more out of pocket to cover the costs.
So they aren't in favor of any health care at all, until they need it.

Old people have seen how often their friends are left with huge bills for needed surgeries how the social services can wipe out the small estates they were planning on leaving their kids, maybe just a small home, but that goes to pay off their hospital bills, making the elderly worry about losing Medicare coverage is just cruel.

There is more emotion that sense in opposing both the public option for insurance, and universal coverage. But then, the insurance companies are the largest donors to both parties.

Nathaniel Said:

planning to migrate to brisbane,australia fm new york,U.S.Got a job offer in govt. hospital as a nurse .?

We Answered:

Having some friends and family already in Brisbane will make a big difference to your first few months. We're a friendly lot here and we like Americans if they come here with an open mind and a sense of humour, but It's an awfully long way from the U.S. and having contacts here will make the settling in process far easier.

I live in Brisbane and love it here. Our climate is great, particularly between about April and October when the southern part of the country is shivering. Brisbane is clean, safe, unpolluted, green and leafy and uncrowded though the traffic is getting pretty bad and public transport is patchy. The council is working on tunnels and bridges (the works for which are making it worse at present) and is putting a lot of money into building busways to get more cars off the roads.

You'll find the cost of living to be higher than the U.S. in some respects but it depends to a degree on where you're coming from. Cars are more expensive and so is petrol (gas) though we drive smaller and more efficient cars than most people do in the U.S. which evens it out a bit and our cars also last longer as there's no need for salt on the roads in winter. Clothing costs about the same; fresh food is generally cheaper and is very abundant and of good quality (it will appear to be more expensive at first until you get used to metrics), but consumer goods and things like shampoo and tampons are more expensive. Fast food is a bit more expensive, but dining out is generally cheaper. And don't forget that you'll have virtually no heating costs. It all works out a bit more expensive but most people find that their salary compensates and so does the better lifestyle and lower medical costs.

Housing costs vary greatly across suburbs and it's difficult to say what the costs will be without knowing roughly where you'll be working. Housing is more expensive than in some parts of the U.S. and cheaper than in other parts. Here it will be less expensive than in NYC and I would guess about the same if you're from upstate. If you intend purchasing a house and will be here before June as a permanent resident, you'll be eligible for a $14,000 First Home Buyer grant for an established house and $21,000 for a newly built one or if you contract to build. As a new immigrant, it doesn't matter if it's not your first home.

All of the following assumes that you'll be coming on a permanent visa.
You'll have a Medicare levy of 1.5% taken out of your earnings which will provide absolutely free public hospital care. Outside hospital, it provides subsidised doctor and specialist visits and pathology. You can visit any doctor who can charge whatever they wish.Medicare sets a 'scheduled fee' for every service and pays 75% of the scheduled fee with the patient paying the rest: it usually works out at less than $20 for a GP visit with specialist 'gaps' being more expensive because of their higher fees (the % is the same). Some doctors 'bulk bill' meaning that they charge only the scheduled fee and visits to them are free. There is also a safety net in place so that once a family reaches a certain out of pocket expenditure in a calendar year (this year $1111.60), the most you will have to pay for any medical service is 20% of the gap between the scheduled fee and the actual charge. We had a bad year last year and reached the safety net after which $4250 specialist accounts were costing us $190. Dental and optical are not covered by Medicare apart from a few specific instances.

Pharmaceuticals are covered by the PBS and the maximum you'll pay for a month's supply of a prescription is $32.90. There's also a PBS safety net and if your family reaches that (very easy to do with a family of 5), prescriptions only cost $5.30 for the rest of the year.

Many people choose to have private health insurance on top of Medicare. That's because hospital waiting lists can be very long for elective treatment. For example, if one of your kids fractures his knee playing football, he will receive immediate, world class treatment in a public hospital for no cost at all. If on the other hand, he needs a knee reconstruction after playing football for a few years, that's elective surgery and it may take a year or longer to get treatment. All health insurance funds offer 'extras' cover for optical, dental and other services not covered by Medicare.

Our private health insurance tends to be cheaper than that in the U.S. because Medicare pays for part of private hospital treatment, but apart from that, it's much better for an important reason that many people are not aware of. By law, everyone with the same level of cover pays exactly the same premium regardless of their age (see exception below) or medical or claims history and regardless of their age or claims history, cover must be provided. An insurance company can't refuse cover for any reason and they can't charge a higher premium because of prior claims. The one exception to that is a government enforced provision which forces funds to charge an age based loading to people who have not previously held health insurance when they take up insurance over the age of 31 (I think that's the age). That's to stop people staying out of private insurance while they're young and healthy and only joining when they're older and need more services. This doesn't apply to new immigrants when they first arrive but may come into effect later if you don't get cover within a certain period of time.

The school system is excellent, but the better schools tend to be in the better suburbs because of greater parental involvement and better discipline at home. I guess that's pretty universal, but it does mean that you should seek advice about where you should live. Public schools have no fees, but most will charge a books and incidentals levy of around $150 per year per student and there will also be a charge for school camps and excursions though virtually never more than another $200 in total. The vast majority of schools have a compulsory school uniform.

It won't all be smooth sailing and you'll have a lot of adjustment to do, but it's a great place and a great environment in which to raise kids.

Welcome!

Roy Said:

Is anyone bothered at all by these statistics? Do we really have?

We Answered:

As someone who works closely with the medical insurance industry, I know all about those stats, man.

I'm just surprised people are this ignorant to assume that nothing should be done about it. Obama is, at least, thinking in the right direction even if his ideas are not embraced.

Colleen Said:

Culture Shock - Help?

We Answered:

haha, i agree with you. America (as in the USA) does seem to be loosing its standard and is falling. I'm not sure if you should leave, though i understand why you would want to. There are a lot of people in the states, and even though a lot are fat and lazy and everything that you described about them, there are still many decent people in the states. Since you love your country so much, why not fight for it keeping in mind that there are still many american citizens who WILL back you up and care. :P
But if you should move or not is a really BIG decision, so don't let us people on Y!A influence your decision too much because it really is a personal choice.