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by mikestew
852 days ago
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I'm sure this was meant as a "oh, it's not so bad in the U. S." type post. But I read it, and am reminded of what a suck-ass system the U. S. has. Sure, almost everything said is true. But let's reiterate: 1. One might pay up to $15K out-of-pocket for childbirth. 2. If you can't pay it, you have to go out-of-band to seek a non-standard procedure of taking care of the debt. The system is not otherwise built to handle a situation that's probably pretty common given the expenses involved. 3. If all else fails, file for bankruptcy. All just to have a child. What you've described is not "not so bad", but rather the plot of a bad movie from the 70s about how corporations have taken over the country and we all live in this dystopian hell where you have to give all of your assets to the corporation to be allowed to have a child. Only it's not a bad movie from the 70s, it's the U. S. healthcare system. And I don't know what kind of low-end plan one gets for $1000/month for a whole family, but I'd bet real money that the deductible would make my eyes water. |
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Anyway, comparing earning 175k USD to 162.37k EUR:
Germany, married with 2 children, Stay At Home Mom Scenario, Tax Category 3, Berlin Region:
Solidarity + Salary Tax is EUR 40.428,00 Pension Insurance: 8.314,20 € Unemployment Insurance: 1.162,20 € Care Insurance: 900,45 €
Total: 50.805 € = $54,706 before health insurance
Virginia, USA, same scenario as above, incl. 2 child tax credit of $4000, four state exemptions: FICA + Federal + State Tax - Child Care Credit: $44,162-$4,000 = $40,162 before health insurance
Germany costs $14,544 a year more for a family with two kids before health insurance. To be fair though, the differences are lesser for most Germans, as almost no common jobs pay over 120k EUR gross.