Health Insurance

[Mand 1]

peejay

I would hate you be your SO and be refered to as your Immigrant all the time makes it sound like he/she is a animal and not you wife/husband.....

Kezzie

I saw that too Kezzie and was like

[pax 0]

Doesn' the tax bracket here average out at about 1/3 of your pay check? Or am I totally wrong?

Your tax bracket depends on your income. Plus, state and local income taxes vary depend on where you live.

[faith 0]

Doesn' the tax bracket here average out at about 1/3 of your pay check? Or am I totally wrong?

The tax bracket is determined on HOW MUCH you make.

I make $22,000 per year. My total tax liability at the end of each year: $0

I have 2 kids and a husband.

Now, when he starts the new job making alot more, then our tax liability goes up.

[john_and_marlene 162]

Doesn' the tax bracket here average out at about 1/3 of your pay check? Or am I totally wrong?

The amount you pay changes as the income goes up. As you income goes over each bracket, you pay more tax on the amount over the previous bracket. As your income increases, you get to keep less of the extra income.

[meddykomp 0]

I am very very lucky. My employer pays the insurance premium at 100% for myself and my family. My husband cannot live in the US, but he has excellent medical coverage here already. My co-pays and deductible are extremely low. The insurance I have is the reason I stay at this job because it is definitely not what I would like to do. However, when my daughter had a $37,000 hospital bill last summer and I haven't paid anything at all for it, it's hard to walk away from a job that provides that.

[rebeccajo 14]

The medical insurance crisis in America is a direct result of a phenomen that occured in our culture after WWII - the baby boom.

When I was a child in the 60's, everybody who had at least somewhat of a decent job had medical insurance fully paid for by the employer - the premiums were fairly affordable to business and it was a nice plus to attract the best people.

As the boomers began to age, they began to need more and more of the health care system. Costs rose by pure virtue of the amount of patients. Add to this improved health care, which is now virtually able to extend life beyond where there is any actual quality of life. The costs incurred today keeping those individuals with us who 50 years ago would have peacefully passed on is staggering. And without a living will, hospitals are duty-bound to keep those patients plugged in and pumped up.

Our current culture places the cost of health care on the backs of business. Where is the logic in that? The premiums that many of you here are quoting ($400 dollars and up - usually higher) per employee per month - how long can business bear this cost? What if american business no longer had to pay those premiums? If some of that money could be delivered back to the worker, and some of it then taken by a national health service, that covered all Americans - do you think most Americans would go for it? I sure as hell would. And don't tell me it wouldn't work either. One giant insurance group? I'd like to see those actuarials.....

Edited March 16, 2006 by rebeccajo

[peejay 327]

peejay

I would hate you be your SO and be refered to as your Immigrant all the time makes it sound like he/she is a animal and not you wife/husband.....

Actually my wife and I have a wonderful loving relationship and we will be celebrating our 2nd wedding anniversary on March 18th. I have known my wife since 1999. My grandparents were legal immigrants from Belarus too and I met my wife through my relatives there. I am not anti-immigrant nor do I think of any immigrant as an animal...legal or illegal.

The point I was trying to make is that people should be realistic and not be blind to the legal ramifications of sponsoring an immigrant that our government legally requires us to do. It is a long term binding commitment whether the marriage endures and even when the adult K-2 children move away from home. I have made that commitment and I am a responsible sponsor. It involves a lot more legal ramifications than a USC marrying another USC. It is my opinion that many people on VJ get too blinded by love and fail to fully realize the additional long term financial liability they can burdened with. It has the ramifications to ruin a USC financially under the right (or wrong) conditions. I did and do not regret it, but...

That said, there was a little sharp bite to my post. My wife has had discipline problems with her daughter for many, many years. There is little hope that will change and my wife and I will most likely be on the financial hook for years to come. Already I have spent thousands to get the kid on the right track without success. It does put a strain on our relationship at times, but our marriage will endure.

As for my other comment about the illegals. I find it ironic that our government forces us to jump through firery hoops for doing things the right and legal way, yet those that choose to break the law are not held accountable. I see it every day in my city and it is not right, just, or fair. Come live where I live and see for yourself. Someone that lives in Vermont (or somewhere similar) would not understand.

[KarenCee 3]

I have health insurance through the school system...BCBS HMO. When I add my husband to it, the monthly premium will go to over $178 a month, where I'm paying $72 a month now...with $20 copays and meds are on a basis of generic $10, brand $25, and non formulary $40. Deductible is not bad either. Beats not having any though.

[Marilyn. 340]

$10 for dental and $109 for medical come off every paycheck of hubby's (that is for both of us) ... We have PPO, I think

[Fuzzness 2]

I'll never again complain about Canada's healthcare

[Peggy 1]

[Aymerlu 3]

I'm one of the unfortunate ones that does not have insurance and cannot afford it. I have looked EVERYWHERE for decent rates and cannot find any. I had a bad accident in the fall where I broke my ankle and had to have surgery. Total cost is about $30,000. The hospital discounted charges since I don't have insurance and now I will be paying about $8000.00. A big difference. So now I get to make $150.00 for a few years, which is no problem. God knows I wish I could afford insurance for myself, but right now I'm doing good to keep up the premiums on my kiddos.

[Peggy 1]

That really just blows my mind.

[KarenCee 3]

Yet, our esteemed leader can spend billions fighting all those bad guys in Iraq when our own country needs those billions to take care of its own....go figure

Edited March 17, 2006 by KarenCee

[Texanadian 10]

Carly's health care plan in the US is $830/month. To retain that same price from last year, her company had to up their deductables from $250 to $500. Copays are $40. Those are the in network prices.

Up until last year the company paid 100% for that. Now she pays $30 and they pay $800. Remember these are monthly not yearly.

Unfortunately, they only cover the single worker. If they have family (or spouses like me) it costs extra. In my case $700/month out of my pocket to join her plan.

Back when they paid for family coverage (2 years ago), it was $1800/month. So the premiums were actually higher than many of the worker's salaries.

So yeah, Texas doesn't have an income tax. But being the fattest state, it gets hit pretty hard with health care premiums. Canadian provinces pay between $200-250/month per person for health care.