Healthcare is Affordable, It's Not Free
My experience with the German health system
This is probably the most common misconception many people (particularly Americans) have about moving to Europe.
That everyone gets “free healthcare.”
It is true that all countries in Europe have what is known as “universal healthcare,” meaning that all people in a given country or region are able to get the medical care that they need, when and where they need it, without financial hardship.
And, it is true that the governments in all of these countries assumes some degree of responsibility for ensuring this — whether it is by a single-payer, government-funded system (like the UK or Sweden) or a system that combines the use of public and private health insurance (like Germany, France and Italy), these systems are all supported by taxes paid by the people benefiting.
Remember what I wrote here about our taxes almost doubling when we moved to Germany?
It’s not free.
Should You Move to Germany?
I’ve had this post kicking around in the drafts folder for a while, a more localized take on this one by Brent Hartinger over at Brent and Michael are Going Places.
And, in Germany, we still pay insurance premiums and have some very limited out-of-pocket…
