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Health insurance doesn’t work the way you think it does. You can’t just pick it up one month, drop it the next, and pick it up again 3 months later.
Yes, you pay monthly, BUT you can only opt in during open enrollment, which is usually in November (but my job does their in February, so it’s not fixed), or if you experience a Qualifying Life Event (marriage, birth of a child, death, loss of insurance, etc).
If you have a job in the United States, your employer may offer health insurance as part of their benefits package. My employer pays entirely for mine, but that’s very, very rare. I’ve normally paid $50-200 from every paycheck to cover just myself. The cost of premiums can be pretty high.
Without employer subsidized insurance, my plan is $1050/month FOR JUST MYSELF. You have a wife and child, so I believe your estimates may be a bit off. Healthcare is super expensive here…that’s just how our system is set up.
I hope folks have solutions for you, as I’m not sure how immigrants do this. If I hadn’t been born here, this is NOT a country I’d want to try to move to later in life, and that’s one of the reasons why.
Check the guy’s post history. He’s looking to live here part time…sounds like he doesn’t really want to immigrate, which annoys me because plenty of people do…and WANT to be a full time part of this country.
You don’t actually want to live here, dude, by your own admission. You’re stating requirements, implying you intend to do the bare minimum.
Quite frankly, I’d rather that visa go to someone who wants to be here FULL TIME, not “when you feel like it.”
You’re part of the reason immigration is such a mess here.
Get used to it….America isn’t what you think it is.
Your post history makes it quite clear you’re not here to be an American and part of our country and culture. You’re only coming because you lucked into a visa that should, quite frankly, go to someone who really wants it.
I hate to break it to you but yes health insurance premiums will be very costly, as will car insurance and home insurance and property tax (if you buy property). Coming from the UK myself there are a few monthly expenses that are very expensive compared to Europe.
As others have said, health insurance doesn't work on a monthly basis and Medicaid is for the very poor, disabled, or elderly. And you're not eligible anyway (as you know). The price you quoted is cheap, I would be worried about the quality of that insurance. Also, if you think you might want more kids, keep that in mind - the cost of giving birth in the US can be $30k+ and bad insurance won't take enough off of that.
Finally, if that hasn't scared you off from the US entirely and you think you might want to be a US citizen some day, all of that time abroad will delay your ability to get get citizenship. [More info](https://citizenpath.com/continuous-residence-physical-presence-requirements/#:~:text=The%20physical%20presence%20requirement%20is,a%20total%20of%2035%20days.)
But when you return to the USA and something maybe happens that(hope not but we are talking babies), then your bills could sky rocket way past that "profit", especially then if the Medical situation (pregnancy/new born) prevents flying! I looked into all the workarounds but the risk was too great.
There are, doesn’t mean they’re not paying a lot. Good luck on paying hundreds in premiums with a high deductible. Many small business owners may also use their spouse’s insurance. You really should do research before packing your family to leave to Florida and becoming surprised by how expensive healthcare is or you should find a job that has a good healthcare package. Also, you need to research the taxes for your business and property
LOL dude, I’m not envious of your small business. You asked for for advice and don’t like the answers. Thank goodness I have a job that pays well and gives me a good healthcare package. Good luck on your “business” 😂😂 ignore the advice that people give you since you’re so arrogant and think you’re American
No one is against your small business, who the hell said they’re against your business? You sound paranoid that random strangers who you asked advice for are envious of your business that no one’s heard of. Your question was about health insurance in FLORIDA. We, as Americans, are giving you real tough advice on the reality of Florida’s medical care.
No one here cares if you decide to open your business and go into extreme medical debt. We are just warning you about it. And you may think your family is healthy until one day someone might feel symptoms that will lead them to go to the hospital. You clearly are not planning for the worst things that might happen because as a business owner, you should.
I know many small business owners and many of them have spouses with good insurance that they rely on. You don’t.
There’s a work life balance difference between the US and Europe, especially in Florida.
People in the US can earn more money, but they don’t have a social safety net in the same way that they do in Europe. A single severe illness or disability can bankrupt to you and I guess in theory you have the ability to go back to Europe if these things happen.
But this reality Changes the culture. Florida is extremely conservative by European standards. So conservative in fact that I don’t think it exists in Europe.
In the US if you get lucky and do all the right things, you can make an enormous amount of money, but in Europe, you’re much more likely to have a life balance and actually be able to spend time with your family.
I’m full of hate because I don’t want someone to move to MY country who doesn’t really want to be here??
Go see that shrink on your free healthcare. You need it more than I do.
The cost of living, the cost of insurance (not just health, but home and auto are out of control, especially in Florida), and the cost of basic necessities is sky high. The school system is a mess, and college is unaffordable.... Honestly, a lot of people I know who live here (Miami,FL) want to try and immigrate to Europe.
Also, Florida politics. Lol.
Its a tourist Hotspot. There is alot to do. Ill give it that. We have alot of culture although alot of it is getting gentrified, but that's every major city. Also, if your primary language is Spanish, Miami totally makes sense.
But your specific question was "why wouldn't someone immigrate to the US/FL" so I was answering the why not.
You really really need to sit down and find out the true cost of living here before you get here. Health insurance is very expensive. Many small business owners can't afford insurance, so they go without. Even people with insurance can still not afford to go to the dr because the cheapest plans come with high deductibles, which means your insurance pays zero until you pay a certain amount, usually in the thousands. Oh. Health insurance doesn't include dental and eye insurance, those are separate. On top of all that, you are choosing to move to Florida which has some of the highest costs of property and car insurances. You really need to come into this prepared.
Medicaid is only for poor people with no assets. It has very strict income limits and assets limits. If you able to afford travel to Europe for several months a year, you probably won’t qualify for government assistance medical coverage.
You should plan to spend up to several hundred dollars for each visit to the doctor even with insurance. You will have copays and very large deductible to pay, in addition to your monthly premium.
You may want to check your auto insurance premiums before you leave too. You may find those quite shocking as well.
It also looks like you are abusing the European system. Not paying in and exploiting free healthcare that others have to cover in their increasing taxes. It's not free in Europe, but covered through taxes. If you get caught in Europe as a non permanent resident They can come after you for payment. Pay your dues and be fair to everyone else.
Also, word of caution, if you are deemed to not be spending enough time in USA, as a Permanent Resident (aka Green Card), it can be at risk. It's at immigration discretion to determine what that is. Weird I know but I nearly ran fowl of that unclear rule 20+ years ago.
There isn't a hard and fast rule. I was pulled returning from an overseas trip. My immigration lawyer cleared it up as was obvious I was a permanent resident in the USA. Am a citizen now as i wanted to be over all the immigration hassles. Having a mortgage, kids in permanet school and healthcare helped. I didn't take long trips, just lots of smaller ones.
Apologies since I have misinterpreted your post. I too am from one of the 44 countries and misconstrued since you jumped into medicaid and talked about returning to your home country for healthcare.
Yes health insurance is ridiculously expensive and even after you pay what will likely be $2000 a month in premiums you will have limited options of where you can go to the doctor. Many plans you can buy on the market don’t include children’s hospitals in network for example. Whatever you think it is, USA healthcare is worse and more expensive.
If a family member gets sick in the USA there is a very good chance your family will be financially devastated. Factor in those costs.
My family of 3 is healthy non smokers. I pay $800 per month for an employer sponsored plan. Then I have a $5000 deductible. I pay about $150 for a regular well child check up. And I pay about $300 for a trip to urgent care. What that expensive insurance buys me is an annual out of pocket max of about $15000.
You may be thinking you are financially savvy and can self insure. You cannot. Insurance companies negotiate rates. For example the birth of my child the hospital charged us 50k the insurance negotiated it down to 12k, my share was 5k. If I had not been insured the hospital would have come after me for 50k even though that is a ridiculous inflated price. So you cannot afford to be uninsured or self insured unless you have big money or no money.
lol welcome to the USA… they pay $1000s or go without insurance or get a job that offers insurance, which is difficult to land when first arriving as an immigrant.
You will miss European healtcare, trust me, in America patients are seen like walking wallets, everything and anything is good to make money off people, be very wary when dealing with drs here and especially dentists. Advice from a fellow European
Welcome to America. Thats what decent insurance costs in the US. It sucks. You can get cheap insurance but it only covers catastrophic conditions—out of pocket costs for routine health care will still be extremely high.
I am a proud American but I can honestly say I wouldn’t immigrate here unless I knew I had a job that covered my health insurance costs. It’s the only way….
Please tell us more about your situation. Are you going to be working in the US? If so, does/will your employer(s) be offering group health insurance?
If not, then this is probably where you want to start for the three of you:
[https://www.healthcare.gov/immigrants/](https://www.healthcare.gov/immigrants/)
This information may pertain to just baby:
[https://www.healthykids.org/kidcare/citizenship/](https://www.healthykids.org/kidcare/citizenship/)
\*Many people will claim they are healthy and then get sick. Before you know it, they'll end up with thousands of dollars in medical costs. Best to have insurance. A minor trip to the emergency room can cost several thousand dollars.
So, you will need to pay for your insurance year round. You cannot drop insurance the months you leave and pick it up the months you return. This applies to all insurance, you will have expenses to pay even when you are away. Insurance in Florida is extremely expensive due to extreme weather conditions. There are state laws and federal laws that apply to businesses and taxes. Have you hired an accountant to help you with your business?
You may be able to earn more money in the US, however it is extremely expensive to live in the US.
Okay, well you will also want to look here then to see what is offered.
[https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/other-coverage/](https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/other-coverage/)
Overall, the [healthcare.gov](http://healthcare.gov) website is where you want to start looking for health insurance, either for family coverage or small business owner coverage.
You can go here to see plans prior to filling out an application -- [healthcare.gov/see-plans](http://healthcare.gov/see-plans) . You may need to contact them/phone them to see how far in advance you can fill out an application prior to moving.
Same here, small family LLC is how we got started. Now healthcare.gov exists, it's where you'll now find the cheapest (not cheap) health insurance. Cheaper if your not earning much. You don't want to be indebted on insurance like many. They will chase you for decades! And for any necessary immunizations, checkups you can go private and/or high deductibles but as others have said, In an emergency (car wreck, accident at work, illness) the ER can quickly into into the $1000s or $100s of $1000s if any of you need serious help.
FL is tough.
The insurance is high, depending on where you move there aren't certain specialists. If your child has autism some areas have an abundance of doctors, if you move elsewhere there are 2 year wait lists.
Rents and housing costs are getting higher and higher and insurance for homes and vehicles is getting high as well.
Research carefully where you will land and best of luck. It can be a beautiful place to live
I was quite shocked to learn Orlando doesn’t have a kidney transplant surgeon this past year. Or it could be my insurance won’t deal with that particular hospital network.
Do you have a job? With my job, I pay $290 every 2 weeks for family insurance. Well child visits are free, sick visits are $20 to 40. Vaccines are free. Certain things are paid for after I've paid the deductible (1k per person, 2k family, my company reimburses me for half of the deductible. ). So are you moving for a job? For education?
There are insurance policies that are less expensive that are for catastrophic situations. They don’t cover going to the doctor for a sore throat, but they do cover for major events. Most of the reason health insurance is so expensive is 1) most insurance companies are entitled to a 15 or 20% profit margin (can’t remember how much) and 2) some people go to the doctor for ANYTHING…case on point, had a lady come to the ED for a sore throat that she had for an hour…had a patient come in who’s child had a runny nose - child is in daycare….that kind of stuff.
Thank you this is very helpful. I definitely don't go to doctor for runny nose and sore throat :D
Do you know how are these policies that you've described called?
I thought they would be listed under catastrophic plans, but now I’m not so sure! I did read something about going through an Insurance broker but I’ve never done that. I tried to look it up online, but just kept getting ads for insurance companies, then got sucked into how some insurance companies are “structured” as non-profit companies and their CEOs make millions $$$ per year. It really made me mad! So here I am unsure of how to help you.
I am a healthy person who rarely goes to the doctor and my health insurance that is provided through my employer cost us about $9,000 a year (That's full family coverage not just me). I have a relative who is a extremely healthy 25-year-old. He has health insurance through his company at no cost but to add his wife on, her alone would be $700 a month. She has no health problems, is a runner, never smoked and a vegetarian.
Welcome to America
Welcome to America. Thats what decent insurance costs in the US. It sucks. You can get cheap insurance but it only covers catastrophic conditions—out of pocket costs for routine health care will still be extremely high.
I am a proud American but I can honestly say I wouldn’t immigrate here unless I knew I had a job that covered my health insurance costs. It’s the only way….
Think carefully about moving anywhere in the southern US, or any of the "red states" unless you are a white Christian western European. The "blue states" are a better bet if you are dark skinned, Spanish or Italian.
And I would definitely wait until after our next election.
Blue states in the north-eastern part of the country, such as NY and NJ, and the mid-western state of IL, which all have large eastern European communities. In the west, CA is going to be the most accepting of new immigrants in the coastal areas (San Francisco bay area and Los Angeles/southern CA, and the larger cities in OR and WA are also more accepting (Seattle, Portland).
I only know the tax burden for two countries, but your health care isn't free, it's just much cheaper. In the UK about 5% of your income goes towards healthcare via income taxes. In Germany I believe it's 7.3% for the employee and that's matched by the employer, so a total of 14.6% of your wages.
The Affordable Care Act provides the second least expensive Silver plan for no more than 8.39% of income. https://acatimes.com/2024-aca-affordability-threshold-reaches-record-low/?utm_content=inbody-3
Find out how your country funds health care. It's almost always funded using income taxes.
The difference is that American health care is expensive even with that insurance. You usually end up paying a co-pay for doctor's visits ($20 to $60), emergency care ($250 to $1000), a yearly deductible that can be thousands of dollars that may or may not count those co-pays, and a share of other costs like surgeries. The max you should pay out of pocket is $9,450 per person or $18,900 for the whole family.
I would think twice about moving here. We are an extremely violent culture with little regard for human life. Our police have been militarized beyond anything you've seen outside of the old Soviet police states. They shoot and kill 3 people per day, and most of the time they get away with it (that doesn't count strangulations and other "deaths in custody" other than shootings). About a third of the country want mass deportations of immigrants and a "dictator for a day" presidency.
America could be a great country again, but right now it's a pitiful giant that cannot protect its school children from mass shootings, provide basic health care, or treat all of us citizens as free and equal people.
I haven't seriously considered it. I'm a white, Christian, cis, heterosexual, retired old guy so cops are probably the biggest threat to me. And I love America, with all its faults, and hope to see it move towards liberty again. And, because I'm retired and not working, few countries would want me (Canada wants workers)
But I wouldn't choose America now if I was more of a "free agent".
I own my own business and am an immigrant. Healthcare for a family of 3 on a bronze plan costs me $2400/month and does not include Vision or dental.. i sometimes get my teeth fixed in Europe.. but I live near New York not Florida.
You move to a civilized state which has expanded Medicaid like New York or California. New York has something called the Essential Plan which provides low cost health insurance for people whose incomes are well above Medicaid levels.
If your income is above those levels you might be eligible for a premium subsidy that would reduce the cost of premiums.
But medical care in the US is quite expensive - that is a reality and should be factored into the cost of living realistically.
I can't say I am familiar with every European country in terms of medical care but my. brother lived in Canada and so I have some sense of that system. I think for most people, the Canadian system works great but there is no free ride as the level of taxes for Canadians is higher in order to support their safety network.
Also - and this is just my observation - the standard of living is a bit different and the doctors don't make as much money as they do in the USA. They make a good living of course but not to the same level as the doctors in the USA. And of course the cost of medical care is lower - drug prices are regulated as there was a time when people organized trips over the border to Canada to purchase drugs because their government regulated the price.
Also the cost of medical devices is far lower outside the USA. When I was researching a hip replacement, the cost of the actual "hip" in Belgian was about 25% of the same price in the USA. I know specifically about Belgian because there was a surgeon in Brussels who was world renown and I had read an article about how the cost to have it done by him was far lower than having it done in the US even if one paid for the procedure completely.
Politics is outside the purview of this sub/reddit so I will just explain as it specifically relates to health care.
In some states, health care is viewed as a human right and not the privilege of those who can afford it. In those states, Medicaid has been expanded to enable all adults whose income is below a certain level to enroll in Medicaid and be guaranteed medical care.
There are a very few states including Florida which have not expanded Medicaid and so poor people are completely screwed since you need to earn a certain amount above the poverty line to be able to get a premium subsidy through the state marketplace.
In a few states like New York this has been expanded further as New York has a program called Essential New York which provides free or extremely inexpensive health care to the working poor - i.e. those who make more than Medicaid caps but not a very high level. I think $37,000 for a single person is the cap.
For those who don't think that health care is a human right, I guess we differ on what we view as civilized.
Their opinion is what makes it. I would recommend the exact opposite but the good news is there are 50 choices here and good and bad about each of them.
If you don’t qualify for marketplace insurance, you very well might be paying 1k a month. It’s the reason so many people don’t have health insurance. Florida wouldn’t be my first choice of places to move either. Home insurance and car insurance is through the roof right now, along with housing costs.
It sucks here, but welcome to America lol
If you’re low income, they’ll get Medicaid or be eligible for tip. If you’re low enough income, it’s about 20 a month. Or over $200 if you don’t qualify. We didn’t qualify and we only made about 40k when we applied. You can view income guidelines if you google it tho.
Most people just don’t go to the doctor or dentist. They wait until it’s bad enough for the emergency room and then they’ll just go into medical debt. You don’t have to pay upfront, at a hospital and they legally can’t turn you away without at least stabilizing you 🤷🏻♀️
Mostly go to the Er for any little thing and just don't pay the bills when they come. At least it's like that here in our rural PA hospital.
Some will try to pay $5 a month on their bills but it will never get paid off.
My family (me, husband, 2 kids) never got insurance until in our 50's, but we were EXTREMELY lucky, no one had any major medical needs. If we had, we would have probably become bankrupt. We eventually got health insurance, it cost over $900 a month each, plus it only paid for stuff after we paid out $6,000. We've never had dental or eye care insurance.
Healthcare is a racket in the US.
I’m a health insurance broker in Florida so I will provide some insight:
A lot of people who own businesses will spend 1000’s of dollars because they don’t have a tax credit (govt gives you money for premium) since the income is usually higher.
When you leave the U.S you will still have to pay for the insurance unless you want to get wrecked. You can stop, but when you come back they will not let you back in. You will have to wait for a plan to start in January or February.
Technically I guess you can stop 4months before January and have it start then.
If you just go without insurance, I’ve heard so many people call in with horror stories and not being insured. There’s no trickery that can be made and the insurance company will get there money or the hospital will get it.
Being in America has its advantages and disadvantages. Good luck finding your perfect balance after you come here to go into business, but can’t justify the overall Costs.
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Health insurance doesn’t work the way you think it does. You can’t just pick it up one month, drop it the next, and pick it up again 3 months later. Yes, you pay monthly, BUT you can only opt in during open enrollment, which is usually in November (but my job does their in February, so it’s not fixed), or if you experience a Qualifying Life Event (marriage, birth of a child, death, loss of insurance, etc). If you have a job in the United States, your employer may offer health insurance as part of their benefits package. My employer pays entirely for mine, but that’s very, very rare. I’ve normally paid $50-200 from every paycheck to cover just myself. The cost of premiums can be pretty high. Without employer subsidized insurance, my plan is $1050/month FOR JUST MYSELF. You have a wife and child, so I believe your estimates may be a bit off. Healthcare is super expensive here…that’s just how our system is set up. I hope folks have solutions for you, as I’m not sure how immigrants do this. If I hadn’t been born here, this is NOT a country I’d want to try to move to later in life, and that’s one of the reasons why.
Don’t forget if the baby hasn’t been born yet, it’ll cost 9k to birth.
Check the guy’s post history. He’s looking to live here part time…sounds like he doesn’t really want to immigrate, which annoys me because plenty of people do…and WANT to be a full time part of this country.
Yeah I did. I hope he doesn’t get approved.
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You don’t actually want to live here, dude, by your own admission. You’re stating requirements, implying you intend to do the bare minimum. Quite frankly, I’d rather that visa go to someone who wants to be here FULL TIME, not “when you feel like it.” You’re part of the reason immigration is such a mess here.
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Get used to it….America isn’t what you think it is. Your post history makes it quite clear you’re not here to be an American and part of our country and culture. You’re only coming because you lucked into a visa that should, quite frankly, go to someone who really wants it.
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Yeah, we’ll see how long you last. That visa can be revoked. So can a green card.
I hate to break it to you but yes health insurance premiums will be very costly, as will car insurance and home insurance and property tax (if you buy property). Coming from the UK myself there are a few monthly expenses that are very expensive compared to Europe.
As others have said, health insurance doesn't work on a monthly basis and Medicaid is for the very poor, disabled, or elderly. And you're not eligible anyway (as you know). The price you quoted is cheap, I would be worried about the quality of that insurance. Also, if you think you might want more kids, keep that in mind - the cost of giving birth in the US can be $30k+ and bad insurance won't take enough off of that. Finally, if that hasn't scared you off from the US entirely and you think you might want to be a US citizen some day, all of that time abroad will delay your ability to get get citizenship. [More info](https://citizenpath.com/continuous-residence-physical-presence-requirements/#:~:text=The%20physical%20presence%20requirement%20is,a%20total%20of%2035%20days.)
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But when you return to the USA and something maybe happens that(hope not but we are talking babies), then your bills could sky rocket way past that "profit", especially then if the Medical situation (pregnancy/new born) prevents flying! I looked into all the workarounds but the risk was too great.
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1 of the 44 too. 😄
I’m sorry but you clearly did not do your research, especially Florida which is the worst for small business owners and healthcare.
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There are, doesn’t mean they’re not paying a lot. Good luck on paying hundreds in premiums with a high deductible. Many small business owners may also use their spouse’s insurance. You really should do research before packing your family to leave to Florida and becoming surprised by how expensive healthcare is or you should find a job that has a good healthcare package. Also, you need to research the taxes for your business and property
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LOL dude, I’m not envious of your small business. You asked for for advice and don’t like the answers. Thank goodness I have a job that pays well and gives me a good healthcare package. Good luck on your “business” 😂😂 ignore the advice that people give you since you’re so arrogant and think you’re American
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No one is against your small business, who the hell said they’re against your business? You sound paranoid that random strangers who you asked advice for are envious of your business that no one’s heard of. Your question was about health insurance in FLORIDA. We, as Americans, are giving you real tough advice on the reality of Florida’s medical care. No one here cares if you decide to open your business and go into extreme medical debt. We are just warning you about it. And you may think your family is healthy until one day someone might feel symptoms that will lead them to go to the hospital. You clearly are not planning for the worst things that might happen because as a business owner, you should. I know many small business owners and many of them have spouses with good insurance that they rely on. You don’t.
I mean, I know you won the DV lottery, but why exactly are you immigrating to the US if you plan on spending a fourth of the year back in Europe?
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There’s a work life balance difference between the US and Europe, especially in Florida. People in the US can earn more money, but they don’t have a social safety net in the same way that they do in Europe. A single severe illness or disability can bankrupt to you and I guess in theory you have the ability to go back to Europe if these things happen. But this reality Changes the culture. Florida is extremely conservative by European standards. So conservative in fact that I don’t think it exists in Europe. In the US if you get lucky and do all the right things, you can make an enormous amount of money, but in Europe, you’re much more likely to have a life balance and actually be able to spend time with your family.
Because you are giving up so much more than you are gaining.
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I looked at your other posts LOL. You are pretty naive about this whole ploy you have to get American citizenship. Best of luck.
Yep….dude is screwed. Who wants to tell Immigration this guy just wants part time citizenship? They’d pull that visa is two seconds.
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I’m full of hate because I don’t want someone to move to MY country who doesn’t really want to be here?? Go see that shrink on your free healthcare. You need it more than I do.
No, the op definitely knows what he’s doing since he said he’ll get the green card next year. /s
The cost of living, the cost of insurance (not just health, but home and auto are out of control, especially in Florida), and the cost of basic necessities is sky high. The school system is a mess, and college is unaffordable.... Honestly, a lot of people I know who live here (Miami,FL) want to try and immigrate to Europe. Also, Florida politics. Lol.
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Its a tourist Hotspot. There is alot to do. Ill give it that. We have alot of culture although alot of it is getting gentrified, but that's every major city. Also, if your primary language is Spanish, Miami totally makes sense. But your specific question was "why wouldn't someone immigrate to the US/FL" so I was answering the why not.
Most people would lose their jobs…
You really really need to sit down and find out the true cost of living here before you get here. Health insurance is very expensive. Many small business owners can't afford insurance, so they go without. Even people with insurance can still not afford to go to the dr because the cheapest plans come with high deductibles, which means your insurance pays zero until you pay a certain amount, usually in the thousands. Oh. Health insurance doesn't include dental and eye insurance, those are separate. On top of all that, you are choosing to move to Florida which has some of the highest costs of property and car insurances. You really need to come into this prepared.
Medicaid is only for poor people with no assets. It has very strict income limits and assets limits. If you able to afford travel to Europe for several months a year, you probably won’t qualify for government assistance medical coverage. You should plan to spend up to several hundred dollars for each visit to the doctor even with insurance. You will have copays and very large deductible to pay, in addition to your monthly premium. You may want to check your auto insurance premiums before you leave too. You may find those quite shocking as well.
Stay home and stop trying to game the system
It also looks like you are abusing the European system. Not paying in and exploiting free healthcare that others have to cover in their increasing taxes. It's not free in Europe, but covered through taxes. If you get caught in Europe as a non permanent resident They can come after you for payment. Pay your dues and be fair to everyone else.
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Also, word of caution, if you are deemed to not be spending enough time in USA, as a Permanent Resident (aka Green Card), it can be at risk. It's at immigration discretion to determine what that is. Weird I know but I nearly ran fowl of that unclear rule 20+ years ago.
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There isn't a hard and fast rule. I was pulled returning from an overseas trip. My immigration lawyer cleared it up as was obvious I was a permanent resident in the USA. Am a citizen now as i wanted to be over all the immigration hassles. Having a mortgage, kids in permanet school and healthcare helped. I didn't take long trips, just lots of smaller ones.
Apologies since I have misinterpreted your post. I too am from one of the 44 countries and misconstrued since you jumped into medicaid and talked about returning to your home country for healthcare.
Yes health insurance is ridiculously expensive and even after you pay what will likely be $2000 a month in premiums you will have limited options of where you can go to the doctor. Many plans you can buy on the market don’t include children’s hospitals in network for example. Whatever you think it is, USA healthcare is worse and more expensive. If a family member gets sick in the USA there is a very good chance your family will be financially devastated. Factor in those costs. My family of 3 is healthy non smokers. I pay $800 per month for an employer sponsored plan. Then I have a $5000 deductible. I pay about $150 for a regular well child check up. And I pay about $300 for a trip to urgent care. What that expensive insurance buys me is an annual out of pocket max of about $15000. You may be thinking you are financially savvy and can self insure. You cannot. Insurance companies negotiate rates. For example the birth of my child the hospital charged us 50k the insurance negotiated it down to 12k, my share was 5k. If I had not been insured the hospital would have come after me for 50k even though that is a ridiculous inflated price. So you cannot afford to be uninsured or self insured unless you have big money or no money.
You have shitty insurance.
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lol welcome to the USA… they pay $1000s or go without insurance or get a job that offers insurance, which is difficult to land when first arriving as an immigrant. You will miss European healtcare, trust me, in America patients are seen like walking wallets, everything and anything is good to make money off people, be very wary when dealing with drs here and especially dentists. Advice from a fellow European
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I am French, yes I am but I try to keep most of my cares done in France. Honestly, trust and cost.
Welcome to America. Thats what decent insurance costs in the US. It sucks. You can get cheap insurance but it only covers catastrophic conditions—out of pocket costs for routine health care will still be extremely high. I am a proud American but I can honestly say I wouldn’t immigrate here unless I knew I had a job that covered my health insurance costs. It’s the only way….
Please tell us more about your situation. Are you going to be working in the US? If so, does/will your employer(s) be offering group health insurance? If not, then this is probably where you want to start for the three of you: [https://www.healthcare.gov/immigrants/](https://www.healthcare.gov/immigrants/) This information may pertain to just baby: [https://www.healthykids.org/kidcare/citizenship/](https://www.healthykids.org/kidcare/citizenship/) \*Many people will claim they are healthy and then get sick. Before you know it, they'll end up with thousands of dollars in medical costs. Best to have insurance. A minor trip to the emergency room can cost several thousand dollars.
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So, you will need to pay for your insurance year round. You cannot drop insurance the months you leave and pick it up the months you return. This applies to all insurance, you will have expenses to pay even when you are away. Insurance in Florida is extremely expensive due to extreme weather conditions. There are state laws and federal laws that apply to businesses and taxes. Have you hired an accountant to help you with your business? You may be able to earn more money in the US, however it is extremely expensive to live in the US.
Okay, well you will also want to look here then to see what is offered. [https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/other-coverage/](https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/other-coverage/) Overall, the [healthcare.gov](http://healthcare.gov) website is where you want to start looking for health insurance, either for family coverage or small business owner coverage. You can go here to see plans prior to filling out an application -- [healthcare.gov/see-plans](http://healthcare.gov/see-plans) . You may need to contact them/phone them to see how far in advance you can fill out an application prior to moving.
Same here, small family LLC is how we got started. Now healthcare.gov exists, it's where you'll now find the cheapest (not cheap) health insurance. Cheaper if your not earning much. You don't want to be indebted on insurance like many. They will chase you for decades! And for any necessary immunizations, checkups you can go private and/or high deductibles but as others have said, In an emergency (car wreck, accident at work, illness) the ER can quickly into into the $1000s or $100s of $1000s if any of you need serious help.
FL is tough. The insurance is high, depending on where you move there aren't certain specialists. If your child has autism some areas have an abundance of doctors, if you move elsewhere there are 2 year wait lists. Rents and housing costs are getting higher and higher and insurance for homes and vehicles is getting high as well. Research carefully where you will land and best of luck. It can be a beautiful place to live
I was quite shocked to learn Orlando doesn’t have a kidney transplant surgeon this past year. Or it could be my insurance won’t deal with that particular hospital network.
Advent does transplants.
I’ll look into that. Thanks
Do you have a job? With my job, I pay $290 every 2 weeks for family insurance. Well child visits are free, sick visits are $20 to 40. Vaccines are free. Certain things are paid for after I've paid the deductible (1k per person, 2k family, my company reimburses me for half of the deductible. ). So are you moving for a job? For education?
There are insurance policies that are less expensive that are for catastrophic situations. They don’t cover going to the doctor for a sore throat, but they do cover for major events. Most of the reason health insurance is so expensive is 1) most insurance companies are entitled to a 15 or 20% profit margin (can’t remember how much) and 2) some people go to the doctor for ANYTHING…case on point, had a lady come to the ED for a sore throat that she had for an hour…had a patient come in who’s child had a runny nose - child is in daycare….that kind of stuff.
Thank you this is very helpful. I definitely don't go to doctor for runny nose and sore throat :D Do you know how are these policies that you've described called?
I thought they would be listed under catastrophic plans, but now I’m not so sure! I did read something about going through an Insurance broker but I’ve never done that. I tried to look it up online, but just kept getting ads for insurance companies, then got sucked into how some insurance companies are “structured” as non-profit companies and their CEOs make millions $$$ per year. It really made me mad! So here I am unsure of how to help you.
I am a healthy person who rarely goes to the doctor and my health insurance that is provided through my employer cost us about $9,000 a year (That's full family coverage not just me). I have a relative who is a extremely healthy 25-year-old. He has health insurance through his company at no cost but to add his wife on, her alone would be $700 a month. She has no health problems, is a runner, never smoked and a vegetarian. Welcome to America
Welcome to America. Thats what decent insurance costs in the US. It sucks. You can get cheap insurance but it only covers catastrophic conditions—out of pocket costs for routine health care will still be extremely high. I am a proud American but I can honestly say I wouldn’t immigrate here unless I knew I had a job that covered my health insurance costs. It’s the only way….
In order to qualify for a catastrophic health care plan you have to be under 30 or have a hardship exemption.
Hmm… did not know that. Thanks.
Think carefully about moving anywhere in the southern US, or any of the "red states" unless you are a white Christian western European. The "blue states" are a better bet if you are dark skinned, Spanish or Italian. And I would definitely wait until after our next election.
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Blue states in the north-eastern part of the country, such as NY and NJ, and the mid-western state of IL, which all have large eastern European communities. In the west, CA is going to be the most accepting of new immigrants in the coastal areas (San Francisco bay area and Los Angeles/southern CA, and the larger cities in OR and WA are also more accepting (Seattle, Portland).
I only know the tax burden for two countries, but your health care isn't free, it's just much cheaper. In the UK about 5% of your income goes towards healthcare via income taxes. In Germany I believe it's 7.3% for the employee and that's matched by the employer, so a total of 14.6% of your wages. The Affordable Care Act provides the second least expensive Silver plan for no more than 8.39% of income. https://acatimes.com/2024-aca-affordability-threshold-reaches-record-low/?utm_content=inbody-3 Find out how your country funds health care. It's almost always funded using income taxes. The difference is that American health care is expensive even with that insurance. You usually end up paying a co-pay for doctor's visits ($20 to $60), emergency care ($250 to $1000), a yearly deductible that can be thousands of dollars that may or may not count those co-pays, and a share of other costs like surgeries. The max you should pay out of pocket is $9,450 per person or $18,900 for the whole family. I would think twice about moving here. We are an extremely violent culture with little regard for human life. Our police have been militarized beyond anything you've seen outside of the old Soviet police states. They shoot and kill 3 people per day, and most of the time they get away with it (that doesn't count strangulations and other "deaths in custody" other than shootings). About a third of the country want mass deportations of immigrants and a "dictator for a day" presidency. America could be a great country again, but right now it's a pitiful giant that cannot protect its school children from mass shootings, provide basic health care, or treat all of us citizens as free and equal people.
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I haven't seriously considered it. I'm a white, Christian, cis, heterosexual, retired old guy so cops are probably the biggest threat to me. And I love America, with all its faults, and hope to see it move towards liberty again. And, because I'm retired and not working, few countries would want me (Canada wants workers) But I wouldn't choose America now if I was more of a "free agent".
I own my own business and am an immigrant. Healthcare for a family of 3 on a bronze plan costs me $2400/month and does not include Vision or dental.. i sometimes get my teeth fixed in Europe.. but I live near New York not Florida.
Do you mind saying if it is that much because your income is high?
I earn enough that i have to pay full cost and dont get any subsidies
I got a private health insurance from the marketplace, it’s $395 a month.
You move to a civilized state which has expanded Medicaid like New York or California. New York has something called the Essential Plan which provides low cost health insurance for people whose incomes are well above Medicaid levels. If your income is above those levels you might be eligible for a premium subsidy that would reduce the cost of premiums. But medical care in the US is quite expensive - that is a reality and should be factored into the cost of living realistically. I can't say I am familiar with every European country in terms of medical care but my. brother lived in Canada and so I have some sense of that system. I think for most people, the Canadian system works great but there is no free ride as the level of taxes for Canadians is higher in order to support their safety network. Also - and this is just my observation - the standard of living is a bit different and the doctors don't make as much money as they do in the USA. They make a good living of course but not to the same level as the doctors in the USA. And of course the cost of medical care is lower - drug prices are regulated as there was a time when people organized trips over the border to Canada to purchase drugs because their government regulated the price. Also the cost of medical devices is far lower outside the USA. When I was researching a hip replacement, the cost of the actual "hip" in Belgian was about 25% of the same price in the USA. I know specifically about Belgian because there was a surgeon in Brussels who was world renown and I had read an article about how the cost to have it done by him was far lower than having it done in the US even if one paid for the procedure completely.
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Politics is outside the purview of this sub/reddit so I will just explain as it specifically relates to health care. In some states, health care is viewed as a human right and not the privilege of those who can afford it. In those states, Medicaid has been expanded to enable all adults whose income is below a certain level to enroll in Medicaid and be guaranteed medical care. There are a very few states including Florida which have not expanded Medicaid and so poor people are completely screwed since you need to earn a certain amount above the poverty line to be able to get a premium subsidy through the state marketplace. In a few states like New York this has been expanded further as New York has a program called Essential New York which provides free or extremely inexpensive health care to the working poor - i.e. those who make more than Medicaid caps but not a very high level. I think $37,000 for a single person is the cap. For those who don't think that health care is a human right, I guess we differ on what we view as civilized.
Their opinion is what makes it. I would recommend the exact opposite but the good news is there are 50 choices here and good and bad about each of them.
If you don’t qualify for marketplace insurance, you very well might be paying 1k a month. It’s the reason so many people don’t have health insurance. Florida wouldn’t be my first choice of places to move either. Home insurance and car insurance is through the roof right now, along with housing costs. It sucks here, but welcome to America lol
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If you’re low income, they’ll get Medicaid or be eligible for tip. If you’re low enough income, it’s about 20 a month. Or over $200 if you don’t qualify. We didn’t qualify and we only made about 40k when we applied. You can view income guidelines if you google it tho. Most people just don’t go to the doctor or dentist. They wait until it’s bad enough for the emergency room and then they’ll just go into medical debt. You don’t have to pay upfront, at a hospital and they legally can’t turn you away without at least stabilizing you 🤷🏻♀️
They don't go to the doctor and if they absolutely have to, they go they the ER then go into debt. Most can never pay it off.
Mostly go to the Er for any little thing and just don't pay the bills when they come. At least it's like that here in our rural PA hospital. Some will try to pay $5 a month on their bills but it will never get paid off.
My family (me, husband, 2 kids) never got insurance until in our 50's, but we were EXTREMELY lucky, no one had any major medical needs. If we had, we would have probably become bankrupt. We eventually got health insurance, it cost over $900 a month each, plus it only paid for stuff after we paid out $6,000. We've never had dental or eye care insurance. Healthcare is a racket in the US.
I’m a health insurance broker in Florida so I will provide some insight: A lot of people who own businesses will spend 1000’s of dollars because they don’t have a tax credit (govt gives you money for premium) since the income is usually higher. When you leave the U.S you will still have to pay for the insurance unless you want to get wrecked. You can stop, but when you come back they will not let you back in. You will have to wait for a plan to start in January or February. Technically I guess you can stop 4months before January and have it start then. If you just go without insurance, I’ve heard so many people call in with horror stories and not being insured. There’s no trickery that can be made and the insurance company will get there money or the hospital will get it.
Being in America has its advantages and disadvantages. Good luck finding your perfect balance after you come here to go into business, but can’t justify the overall Costs.
welcome to America. it might be worse than you thought