Hello!
I’ve seen a few posts praising the US and I can’t deny that I’ve also had a very concrete goal of moving permanently to the US eventually. I’m from the EU so the “reality” that I have of the US comes mainly from the media. With this being said, I’d like the brutally honest opinions of those that experienced the US first-hand, whether you’re American, have always lived in the US and absolutely hate it, or if you moved from the EU to the US and are loving the experience.
- As expats, I think we’re all running from something from our home country (work conditions, family situations, etc). What made you move to/out of the US?
- Do you feel your QoL (quality of life) has improved with your move to/out of the US?
- If so, would you attribute this to working conditions/salary? Or living conditions such as more free time, good pension/retirement, etc
- Do you plan on going back to your home country? If so, what is the main driver of that decision?
Last, but not least, for those living in the US, do you believe that the pros of having more/better career opportunities (at least for skilled labor/PhD level) in the US outweigh the cons of living there, namely:
- poor/expensive healthcare
- extremely high tuition fees for colleges
- high crime rates (naturally highly dependent on the place you live)
- small amount of time for maternity leave (I don’t mind the small amount for paternity leave, but in Scandinavian countries mothers can have up to a year of maternity leave which I believe is very beneficial for the kids. I do value countries that value and protect the family structure)
- … and a general low work-life balance? (This last bullet point is not as important to me as I do like and appreciate the hustle culture of the US which makes effort/skills be more appreciated and compensated)
Thank you all! Apologies in advance if this has been asked multiple times before, but I’d like to condensate different perspectives in a single thread if possible as it might be helpful for others as well! :)
US healthcare itself (quality of medicine) is actually decent, but you have to be very proactive - aggressive even- in advocating for yourself and navigating it.
If you are a female or a POC, you could get treated like your symptoms are imaginary- this is a very real problem. Of course it shouldn’t happen- but in the US we can choose the doctors we want (within your insurance network/plan). Research and self-advocacy is key.
For the most part our doctors and definitely the nurses are decent people who care about patient outcomes.
The negative aspect of our healthcare is based around the systemic aspects - the absolute clusterfuck of health insurance; and unfortunately the people on medicaid and the unhoused who cannot afford insurance use healthcare facilities in a way that drive up medical and insurance costs for everyone else (example- going to the emergency room for a stomach ache or eye infection that’s lasted 3 days).
Because health insurance is unaffordable for these folks in the first place - they manage their medical concerns in a way that is reactive instead of proactive - it is their only choice esp. in areas without low-cost clinics.
So they can’t even get an appointment with a regular doctor as they don’t have insurance- this resorting to only going to the emergency room if something gets bad enough. It’s a vicious downward spiral that costs more and more each year.
Us healthcare system is a disorganized hot mess and an embarrassment - but 90% of the clinicians you interact with are kind people with good hearts who want to heal. Just want to make the clarification as I feel like the view of the actual clinicians gets unfairly wrapped into the perspective of the messed up administration when viewed from outside of the US.
Just a point of view here, I have a lot of family who has been or are in madicaid and they actually love it. When my brother got brain cancer in his late 20s and got dx the day before his first kid was born, he was taken to MD Anderson for treatment (the best cancer care on planet earth) where they performed two surgeries and follow on radiation. He is totally fine now and cost was absolutely minimal to non existent. Same with their pcp. They actually see their pcp quite regularly.
The people who get screwed are people working for tiny companies who can’t afford good healthcare but don’t qualify for Medicaid or self employed. As a reference my employer pays around $30k a year for my health insurance so it’s hard for small companies to afford it.
I think the thing that sucks about the US is your health insurance is tied very much to your employment. And you need insurance no matter what your health situation is because the risk of having to pay out of pocket for something can be immense.
You can have excellent healthcare plan in the US if you work a skilled career full time for a mega corporation. But it can be difficult to navigate otherwise. Those who are self-employed, retired early, or in any situation outside of a normal W2 FT job have to get creative to have access to decent insurance.
For nearly half of Americans on Medicaid and Medicare, it isn’t,
That doesn’t really apply for a foreigner looking to immigrate. But its still worth noting that there is a lot of government involvement in health insurance.
There is but you have to qualify for those. Medicaid is not that great from what I’ve seen and many doctors don’t want to take it. Medicare is very decent insurance but only generally available to those 65+, along with some other exceptions of course.
I was on Medicaid for a year and it was fabulous. I could have afforded to pay copays, and should have been charged.
I have a friend on Medicaid and she says it is fantastic.
Yep, I’m an independent contractor, mostly healthy in my 30s and pay $750 month for my plan, which doesn’t include my $90 a month inhaler. But I chose it because in the event there is a major issue, I won’t get screwed by massive unexpected expenses (lower out of pocket max; and really good coverage out of network). It’s not an ideal situation .