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Comment by dkyc | Hacker News Reader

"Be able to get a $100 MRI. It can be done for this price." [...] Also you may get it for free when you actually need it, if you live in a place with a sane health system (i.e., not the USA)."

As someone who lives in Germany where people pay almost 20% of their salary for non-opt-out health insurance, I'm astonished by people that think a state-forced health insurance gets you free MRIs.

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In the context of healthcare, "free" means "free at the point of use." This is perfectly sensible, because everybody is aware there is no such thing as healthcare which is literally absent of any cost. Given that, it seems like making this tedious statement every time someone references free healthcare is getting old.

I'd also point out that the insurance rate is actually 15.5%, that people with low incomes are exempt, that the total payment is capped, and that employers contribute around half of this payment.

It's pretty clear the list is talking about all-in costs, though.

Under the ER one it even specifies "the system" as who its currently costing $1000.

Yes, the usual nitpick about tax-funded services applies here. It's not actually free, as in it doesn't come from the sky, but if you pay your taxes you're covered, which means that A) you WILL have the service when you need it, with zero cost at the moment of purchase (that is the key here: no headaches related to money, no loans necessary, etc), and B) average Joe pays less in taxes than what he would spend if national healthcare was provided, since when it is not, the high entry barrier allows the development of a price-raising oligopoly.

I guess that it's a matter of opinion, but personally, looking at the state of healthcare in the USA, I'm quite glad I live in Europe.

Healthcare is under 12% GDP in Germany so a 20% tax on everyone is clearly not happening.

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