[deckard1]

> I'm actually amazed at how many folks work for decades, then something happens, and there's a gofundme set up for the family to help with day to day bills.

Not to go all Bernie Sanders on you, but... welcome to America?

Maybe you don't live in the US. But here in the US, a single medical bill can wipe you out. And because we value free market healthcare, that means you don't know what the price will be until after you receive treatment. You won't know if you're covered or denied coverage until after the incident. Because that's how the Free Market(tm) works.

Be thankful if you've never had the luxury of spending months battling a massive bill you received because one of the ten random people you saw one night in a hospital was out-of-network despite being at an in-network hospital.

You don't have to be a full blown socialist to see how fucked America is.

[mgkimsal]

I do live in America, and possibly should have qualified that statement. The folks I was referring to were already ... middle class or higher, who understood the value of savings/insurance, and had ample opportunity to do so, and still didn't. That's what sort of... gets me. Situations where people were never earning enough to be able to remotely prepare for financial setbacks... I don't include them in my "amazement" comment. I'm generally "amazed" they manage to survive at all in today's world.

I've not quite had the situation you've mentioned with medical stuff, but have had some ER visits which end up costing thousands out of pocket on top of the ~$10k/year we spend on insurance.

For people I've known who were in software, or engineering, or law, and had high-paying careers over decades, to know they were still living that close to the edge financially, that's what amazes me. And sometimes it's bad spending habits (or drugs, or whatever), sometimes it's just poor financial education.

But to the original point - an extra ~10% year in income to many folks - even if it means a slightly reduced 'quality of life' by some measure - can have an impact on their lives down the road, but they also need to manage that extra income properly.

[edbob]

US health care does not even resemble a free market system. Every incentive is perverted by the government, starting with the tax code practically forcing insurance to be tied to employers.