Canadian here.

$0 for everything, generally

If you have blood pumping from a stump, or have something catastrophic and are in immediate peril, you are seen quickly and get first class treatment....in most cases... However, our Indigenous population and other vulnerable sectors do not always get treated well sadly, and in some remote places access to health care is limited

Now if it's something "minor", you will wait for an appointment, or in the ER...for a long time, like 6-18 hours. which I have done many times However, you will get seen, and you will get services... The biggest bill I ever had was like $15 for parking

Some examples from my own experience: My mother had multiple, debiliatating illnesses over 20+ years, $0 Dad had a heart attack 15 years ago, $0 I was born , c-section, $0 i had multiple children, $0 Vasectomy (no more children haha) $0 Massive car accident, many injuries, $0 See my doctor annually for checkup, $0

Loved one recently diagnosed with cancer. Within a week she has a team of 5 medical professionals assigned to her to kill this thing. If she was in the USA, this would bankrupt the family.

UK.
Visit to doctor: free
Ambulance trip to hospital: free
Broken arm: free
Pregnancy care, maternity, birth, etc: free
Cancer treatment, including multiple rounds of Chemotherapy, surgery, post-op care, etc etc: free

Prescription: about £10, but I get an annual fixed price unlimited pass which pays for itself in a month or three all the stuff I'm on.
Parking at the hospital: not free.

Dentist: not free.

Australian here.

Just took my wife to the ER twice this weekend. Stressy.

Blood tests, consults, medication, drip, snacks and drinks, the lot.

$0

Portugal.

Health care is free in the public system. Prescriptions cost but they are token amounts, usually like 50 cents to 5 euros.

Emergency and urgent care is generally good.

Routine care, like family doctor / GP stuff, has some issues with wait times.

Private hospital systems exist as do private insurance plans, but these are pretty inexpensive. In general, they treat routine to minor problems. For major surgeries or serious stuff like cancer treatment, you’ll likely be handled in the public hospitals anyway.

GER. I barely go to the doctor so I mostly pay for others and I love to. I earn enough to choose to get private insurance but honestly that juet goes against my ideas of public and collective insurance.

And in the other side I had to get an MRT some time ago. It seemed urgent so I got an appointment right away and the whole process has cost me 0 extra.

Canadian here... I had a boss who was American. He would often talk about how the American system was so much better then the Canadian system. This upset me but luckily I could go to the hospital and get my feelings checked for free.

Canada - All of that would be covered, prescriptions aren't.

Seemingly more and more people want the American system.

Serbia - but more specific to my town it seems.

By the time I was born, they already sabotaged universal healthcare to such near uselesness, that I was prescribed horse meat as a child to treat my immune defficiency.

It has only gotten worse since.

They just look up your diagnosis, and prescribe generic meds that you have to buy.

It's rare that anything gets investigated or tested. All I can say is I had a mole removed for free, after an injury.

Australia. A broken arm no fee. General check up - no fee.

Canada

I stayed with my parents for a few days when my grandmother died. I was sleeping on the couch and mom my noticed I wasn't breathing at regular intervals. She said I should get a sleep test when I flew home on Sunday.

I called my doctor on Monday, had an appointment on Wednesday, he sent a referral and I got called on Friday that there was a cancellation that night if I could make to the sleep lab for a sleep test. I had no plans so I paid for parking outside the sleep lab for the night.

I got a call Monday that my test results were back, went to an appointment a few weeks later. Paid for parking again. Was given a trial CPAP to use until a got another sleep test with the machine to get a proper pressure level. I was told not to drive until that test. I paid for subways and busses until that test a week later.

I went for another sleep test, I paid for a taxi since I wasn't allowed to drive.

I got a machine, a paid $700 dollars and a portion was covered by the govt and then my extended benefits covered the majority. I paid maybe $150 in the end for my machine because I didn't get the basic model that would have been completely covered.

In all I paid less than 200 for the CPAP and for parking. Everything else was covered.

In the years since I have had about 6 more sleep tests and that is only because my sleep apnea is complex central sleep apnea not obstructive. I have paid nothing for any of those tests or heart and brain scans that were involved. Just the occasional parking near a hospital.

I've paid for CPAP machines and masks but had them reimbursed by my extended benefits through work. If I wasn't covered through work they would still be covered to a certain amount through provincial medical coverage.

Canadian here:

Our successive conservative/neo-liberal governments have been getting our public services, including health-care, for decades now.

Getting appointments for anything is near impossible. To go to a walk-in emergency clinic now requires an appointment, if you can get one. Once you have a reference to a specialist, it takes over one year to get an appointment.

However, the government, in alliance with a private company, have set up websites where you cab easily get appointments in the private sector near immediately or within 2 weeks. If you have a good job you're most likely to have private insurance to cover the fees up to 80%.

Oh and the Canadian Medical Association, is in on the racket to privatize healthcare. And one of the largest Canadian corporations, Loblaws, who owns a major stake in the grocery and pharmacy business, started investing in the healthcare business as well.

As soon as we got public single payer healthcare, capitalism has been sabotaging it constantly to the benefit of the private industry.

Canadian here:

Some provincial governments are purposely underfunding healthcare in their provinces in order to make it worse. The purpose behind this is to try and push for more private healthcare. They figure if everyone thinks the current healthcare system sucks, it's easier to sell them on private. I'm fucking tired of this shit. The world is just full of greedy selfish assholes.

Australia

Two years ago, my dad slipped at the boat ramp and broke his wrist. He went in the local ER, presented the family Medicare card, and they worked right away to put his arm in a cast and prescribe pain medication to him. Nothing was paid out of pocket, and the card was just to verify identity, since nothing is really deducted or anything.

A few months later, he got stung on the ankle by a stingray (luckily the barb didn’t break in his leg,) and was driven to the ER by a step-family member he was able to peddle his bike to quickly. His leg was quickly put in warm water and got given antibiotics, and was admitted for a week stay. After 3 days, it was healed enough for him to voluntarily return home, even though the full stay was still there for assurance. Yet again nothing was paid out of pocket.

For general checkups and appointments, it’s a bit hit or miss, where sometimes you need to pay around $70 AUD, but for others it is fully subsidised. For example, a blood test I had recently was fully free, whereas my most recent dental appointment required payment.

The cool thing is that I actually found out through my MyGov account that Medicare emailed a notice telling me that they owed me $100 and a couple cents, since it was some sort of post-appointment subsidy. Pretty neat honestly, didn’t know at the time they’d even consider doing that.

There’s also a new tier of healthcare facilities which were and are still being built by the Albanese Labor government both last and this term, which are called Urgent Care Clinics, basically being mini hospitals for mainly physical issues like broken arms, cuts or other injuries, which are easy enough to treat. These were created to ease the burden on emergency departments of full blown hospitals, so as to allow more elderly and sick patients to get treatment with less delay.

Hi,

(France) for a broken arm or a general checkup you wouldn't pay anything. Actually, for the checkup you would pay upfront (my doc takes 10€) and get reimbursed a few days later.

Don't be fooled, there are constant attacks on this system by the ruling class, they try and nudge the narrative a little bit every day, but it's so entrenched here I keep my hopes up that we won't let it go without a fight.

It is great. A dream if u will. FANTASTIC. I laugh at americans all the time together with the rest of the developed world

Germany. A fucker broke my arm with his car driving reckless. I paid nothing. 3 days of hospital, a surgery at my thumb (ligament tear) and several physiotherapy sessions. I also wouldn't have had to pay anything if it had been my fault. The idea behind this insurance system is, that they want you to go to work again as soon as possible. Because they also pay out sick pay. Your company pays for the first 6 weeks, then it's the insurance.

Norway

General checkup: 2-3 weeks waiting time, cost 120-360 NOK (~20 US gallons)

Broken arm: Trip to ER, waiting time 0 minutes to 4 hours depending on pressure. Travel costs are reimbursed. Cost 0 NOK. (0 inches of coin)

Eye surgery: Few months waiting time. Travel costs reimbursed. if it was a surgery that was necessary to prevent severe handicap, cost is 0 NOK. If it is surgery to just remove the need to wear glasses, you'd have to pay the thing. Roughly 35000 NOK (3800 Fahrenheit)

Sweden here. Our health system is under some strain right now but still functioning. If we want a GP appointment we have to call at exactly 08:00 am to register and then get a call back several hours later, usually you get an appointment the same day if it's potentially serious, a week or two for non-urgent issues. There are GP offices and health centres everywhere, even in small towns of 1-2 k people, so you rarely have to go far. We have an annual fee cap of about €300 after which all prescriptions and treatments are free. In many cases your employer will refund the cost of doctors appointments (€20). My partner had a tissue sample tested for breast cancer recently (negative thankfully!) it was totally free and took about a month for the results.

Canada.

As someone else mentioned the current government is trying to make things worse so we can have American style hearth care.

Primary care can be hit or miss. For my own GP I have to travel a bit back to my home town to see them because it's a bit painful to find a new one where I'm at now. It also might take a day or two to get an appointment.

It is far from perfect but I'm incredibly doubtful that private health care would improve anything at all. I just don't think the incentives align that could allow for it at all.

Austria here. Costs go from nothing to basically nothing. Prescribed medicine costs a flat fee of a few € per item/box. Wait times are usually short but can vary, I've only had really bad experiences for general doctors outside of normal hours (there are always some of them open for availability on weekends and holidays). But that's to be expected.

UK, only concern was how will I get home. Could walk but it's 3AM and cold, do I still need cash for a taxi?

Japan. MRI $40. Basic doctor visit $5. Basic antibiotics $5. Almost all hospitals and clinics in the country are in-zone or whatever... There is no annual deductible.

I used to live in the US and now I live in Denmark. I recently fell off my bike and got hurt. I went to the non-ER hospital and had some x-rays, an ultrasound at a specialists office, got a sling, and some nominal amount of ibuprofen/paracetamol/cut cleanup thrown my way. Then had a follow up with a specialist and got a little PT as well.

$0. It's unreal as someone who has experienced injury in the US. I got amazing care in a pretty timely fashion and didn't have to worry about going broke

Germany.

I had a nasty fall off my bike about five weeks ago, but nothing seemed immediately broken. I went to the orthopedist the next day. Hand X-ray, then CT. Got a splint prescribed. I had to pay a 10€ fee for the splint, and might need to pay for the CT (we did it directly there instead of referring to a radiologist), but the insurance might cover it, as the reason for not transferring was due to a holiday and long weekend starting the next day.

Then I realized my other hand was having issues. Back to orthopedist. X-ray, referral to MRI, elbow splint prescribed. 10€ fee for the splint.

I also had some magnet field therapy, which I had to pay out of pocket: 40€ per session.

So the total out-of-pocket cost, assuming my insurance covers the CT: 300€ for three orthopedist visits, CT, MRI, two splints, and seven sessions of magnet therapy.

Germany does allow certain high earners to opt out of the public insurance and go private, ans the experience for privately insured people tends to be better, which I think sucks a lot. I personally am on the public plan and am overall very happy with it, but I can also easily afford the things that are out of pocket.

Uk. Im incredibly grateful for the NHS and regularly thankful we don't have the shitshow of medical insurance etc. However. We've had 15 or so fucking years of austerity so all public services are on their knees. The NHS are having a massive retention and recruitment issues. So in short you do get treatment, but may have to fight to not get fobbed off. Main issues are:

1. NHS try to make you go away cos they can't cope with more strain
2. Recruitment issues mean staff quality is poor
3. Lazy staff are hiding behind points 1 and 2 so that they can dodge work

So...atm it's the worst I've ever known it

France.

General checkups are considered a US only thing that is actually detrimental. You don't go see a doctor if you're all right usually, there a few stupid reasons you still have to. If you have a benign seasonal illness but you need to be off work you need a form filled out by the doctor so your employer has to allow it and the health insurance can pay if they need to (I'll spare you the details but it mostly depends on the duration of your illness), if you are joining a sports club you typically need your doctor to certify you're fine to do that (this needs to stop doctors aren't nannies and they have too much work as it is!!!).

I'm very fortunate that I have a GP who's generally available within a day or two. There's a shortage for all healthcare professions, the French refuse to believe it but it's mostly because it pays shit: Luxembourg and Switzerland don't nearly have as many issues getting enough staff in hospitals. A lot of people don't even have a GP. If you can't travel the waiting times for some exams or specialists are 6 months or more, people think this is somehow acceptable. You can still do medical tourism at the expense of French insurance if you border one of the richer countries, any money leftover you'd have to pay would be a pretty reasonable amount but they may try to wriggle out of paying claiming you're doing medical tourism for no good reason.

For cancer checks if you live near one of the good hospitals for cancer you don't have to worry too much about them making you wait until it gets to stage 4. But you have to be assertive and advocate for yourself if you don't and possibly give up and go 500 km away.

For a broken arm you'd pay nothing usually unless you're in the cracks of the mandatory extra insurance thing because you don't have a job but you're also too rich for the State-funded one, so maybe around 50€ including X-rays and the cast.

France is very behind on mental health care and psychiatric wards in hospitals are a disgrace mostly due to extreme understaffing by doctors. For most other things they're all right except busy ERs have insane waiting times and they have no money to hospitalise you if you will survive so they'll send you home even if you barely have the strength to get into a taxi.

The food in hospitals is all right but I wouldn't ask too much of the vegan options.

UK

I got hit by a driver a couple of years ago. Ambulance to A&E was free. Triage and being seen was free. CT was free. Sling for broken clavicle was free. I had 6 weeks off work due to lingering effects of concussion - getting signed off by the doctor was free.

I usually see the GP once or twice a year for minor things and those visits are always free.

My partner's antidepressants are free. Therapy is free. Birth control is free.

In Scotland all prescriptions are free.

I can't imagine having to consider finances in the event of any health issues.

Slovakia here. It's pretty liberating, TBH. Even despite trying to stay healthy and vital, one will eventually get sick or injured and will need help. It is nice that it is already paid (by taxes) and we can just get the needed care without fear of of ruining ourselves financially. Also meds are pretty cheap or free for patients.

The system is set out in the way that it is better for state that patients be healthy, because patients' sickness is state's expense. So state tries to limit its spending while still providing reasonable care. Although, it is hard with the population getting generally older (more serious, and so expensive, illnesses) while we still have only very limited medicine to reverse aging.

I am wondering how the universal health care system affects humans proactivity for preserving their health. But from what I have heard, it is unfortunately low in both cases 😕

In Australia.

I went to the doctor complaining of weird headaches and vertigo, so she sent me for X-ray and MRI. They discovered holes in my bones that proved I have blood cancer (myeloma). Further blood tests proved that I was not long for this world and organs were failing, got pushed to the top of the list and sent to hospital the same day that the blood tests came back. At this point, treatment hadn’t cost me anything.

In hospital for four weeks with IV medications and chemotherapy, sent home with chemotherapy and a whole bunch of other tablets. Spent a year not responding to chemotherapy, told to get my affairs in order. At this point, treatment hadn’t cost me anything.

A specialist recommended a stem cell (“ bone marrow”) transplant, and then because it worked so well, another one six weeks later. In hospital for two weeks each time, with IV medications and chemotherapy. At this point, treatment hadn’t cost me anything.

I then spent 18 months taking chemotherapy tablets daily; these cost the government $28,000 a month; I paid $6.50 a month. Another twelve months on weekly immunoglobulins, which cost me nothing.

Six years after diagnosis, I’m now in remission (although “myeloma always comes back”). I’ve been two years with “no evidence of disease”.

I’m grateful and lucky that I live in Australia and have the public health care system. I would not have been able to pay for any of this in a country with healthcare-for-profit.

UK.

There were complications when my wife gave birth. 2 weeks in hospital, some surgery, and nurses and midwives on call 24/7. The biggest cost was me stress buying snacks for my wife (until she told me to stop!). Even parking was reduced to £11/week, since she was in for multiple nights.

Another occasion. I had a benign lump in an annoying place. It took 14 months to get through to get it removed. It's only when I went in I realised it was not a 5 minute snip. Around an hour for a plastic surgeon to properly remove and stitch it up.

The NHS has its problems. Mostly caused by previous governments trying to starve it (to let their mates sell us for profit healthcare). The system and staff are absolutely awesome.

If I'm asked to point out what makes me proud to be British, the NHS is the prize jewel in that particular crown.

Cost wise, we pay national insurance, a fixed percentage of income. ("Payment by ability, treatment by requirement.") Prescriptions are £9.90 each, or £120/year. They also wave the fee for a lot of groups who might have problems with it. It's massively more cost effective than the American system.

I'm Norwegian, where you have to pay about $30 to go to the doctor (which is set to $0 after spending $150 in a year).

I'm not sure about a broken arm, but I think it's free.

I live in Denmark now - the only difference is that there is no cost with going to the doctor.

NZ:

Doctor visit is fairly expensive, but very dependant on whichever government we have in. Between $0-45 per visit, kids are always free up to 18 years old. Kids meds are free.

ER is free, any meds prescribed from a hospital are free.

Dentistry is free up to 18 years old, excessively expensive after that.

Generally injuries are covered by ACC, so specialists related to an injury are also mostly covered.

I spent 28 days in hospital 3 years ago, including helicopter transfer on day 1 and two weeks later ambulance ride to a bigger hospital. Got surgery on my lung and various other procedures. Total cost $0.

Scotland, the getting to the doctor is variable. Many GPs are overrun with patients. Same day appointments are pretty much if you're lucky or if you have an actual emergency. If you just want a checkup, most of the time you can get an appointment within a week or two (or at least at my GP).

Hospital referrals can take ages, once again if it's serious or urgent you'll be seen, but otherwise it can take a very long time (like I had them get back to me 2 years after I got the referral at some point for something). You also don't know how long is the queue in front of you.

It's very variable though, I lived in a different town before and there I could walk in to the GP an be seen the same day after waiting 1-2 hours every time. That was before Brexit and COVID though.

Cost wise, all free (other than taxes). Any prescription you just walk into the pharmacy and get it for free.

The specific tax for this is around 8% (not strictly true as it covers other things than just healthcare though, like unemployment and other social benefit stuff). That being said, you get the benefit even if you are not paying the tax, students, unemployed etc.

Its nice. Paramedics and the hospital saved my life so im grateful.

amazing. i cant fathom this not being the global norm