That doesn't solve the problem. More than half of bankruptcies caused by medical expenses in the US are people who have medical insurance.
Further, medical insurance makes it impossible to live cheaply in the US. I make do with very few possessions, humble housing, and little spending. Health insurance accounts for about half my expenses, more than the next three largest expenses (rent, food, car insurance) combined. I'm probably going to move into a van at some point in the next year, at which point health insurance will be around 2/3 of my expenses.
If health insurance is 2/3 of your expenses, that means that you can be retired for 1/3 as long. And that's health insurance if I never get sick--healthcare costs a lot more if you do get sick. Granted, I would eventually qualify for medicare at which point that expense would come down.
Health insurance subsidies kick in at when insurance costs over 9.5% of income, unless you make over ~$50k/year. I'm not entirely sure how insurance could be 1/2 to 2/3 of your expenses, unless you are saving 90% of your income.
I'm really not sure where you're getting your math. I think you're conflating net (post-tax) income with gross (pre-tax) income, but the numbers you're saying don't add up even with that assumption, so I'm really not sure what mistake you've made or how to correct it.
My monthly breakdown is (VERY) roughly: 45% taxes, 15% health insurance, 10% rent, 5% other required stuff (food/utilities/other insurances). The remaining 25% mostly goes to savings/retirement, but sometimes not, depending on variances in expenses and if I decide to buy some big ticket item. When I do spend money it's usually on experiences (trips/concerts mostly) rather than buying things.
I make more than $50K/year. If you make enough money to pay the full cost of health insurance, and you live frugally on your other expenses, it would be quite easy for health insurance to be half your expenses.
You can get screwed even with insurance. I had a bike accident in 2006, breaking both of my arms required me to get a bi lateral radial head replacement. It turned out the hospital to which I was sent was out of my insurance network, and I ended up getting an out of network bill for $50,000 USD.
My wife had a bad climbing accident in Glencoe a few years back and was rescued by the local mountain rescue team working in conjunction with an RAF helicopter and taken to Fort William hospital.
The only thing we were left with was the suggestion from the (awesome) nurse to "Come back to Fort William, but don't come back here!"...
Man that sucks. The whole 'out of network' thing sounds like a perfect excuse. As though patients have a whole lot of control over which parties the insurance companies sign up with.
And you can't avoid it really. I asked the hospital if they took my insurance as I was being rolled into the ER. They said yes. That means that they are happy to bill the insurance, not that that are in the insurance network.
For contrast: I also had a biking accident, broke my right leg in six places, pretty complex breaks too. Seven hours of operations and a lot of effort to get back to normal which more or less worked. Total cost: $500 or so in deductibles, not a cent more. I still have half an Ikea in my right leg on account of this little trip for my health, still debating whether to have it removed or not, which will be free because it is related to the original accident.
That story is disgusting, what I find really shocking is that apparently if you get the media interested suddenly your bill evaporates.
Further, medical insurance makes it impossible to live cheaply in the US. I make do with very few possessions, humble housing, and little spending. Health insurance accounts for about half my expenses, more than the next three largest expenses (rent, food, car insurance) combined. I'm probably going to move into a van at some point in the next year, at which point health insurance will be around 2/3 of my expenses.
If health insurance is 2/3 of your expenses, that means that you can be retired for 1/3 as long. And that's health insurance if I never get sick--healthcare costs a lot more if you do get sick. Granted, I would eventually qualify for medicare at which point that expense would come down.