Me (18m) and my girlfriend (17f) are planning to immigrate because of several problems annoying the hell out of us in our own country.
I love America in so many ways. Pop culture, diverse nature, friendly people, I could go on for days… but honestly people here make it seem like I can’t have a nice walk with my gf at night in the fear of a dude showing up with a gun.
That goes for healthcare too. Am I always going to be in the fear of going bankrupt if a health problem comes up?
Thanks in advance for the input guys 👍
Edit: I’m speechless guys. A little thank you to all the people who responded. This is why I like Americans.
Also, I could use a little bit of help asking more detailed questions personally so if you have the time to spare, I’d love to discuss some stuff with you guys.
27 comments
> people here make it seem like I can’t have a nice walk with my gf at night in the fear of a dude showing up with a gun.
Absolutely not, you’re reading crime highlights from a nation of 330 million people. Keep some perspective here.
> Am I always going to be in the fear of going bankrupt if a health problem comes up?
No. This is why you have health insurance.
I get that you love American culture, that’s awesome — but keep in mind that the “grass is always greener on the other side”.
Healthcare? Probably.
It depends on your level of insurance, despite popular belief US has government assisted or even completely paid healthcare, it is not universal though. Your health is tied to your employer (mandated by federal government I think). I am a state worker so its not an issue for me since the state pays for like everything.
Guns? No
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Majority of the people in my town own firearms, I never heard a gunshot in like 5 years except the annual shooting competition we host.
There are places that are dangerous. There are also states that are extremely safe and you’ll basically never see a gun unless you seek it out.
But yes, health care is an issue but very rarely an big issue until you are older. It IS expensive and the average person spends 10-12K a year on it. Just factor additional costs into earning when you compare.
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The media’s marketing strategy is to amplify fear. Fear sells. So they focus on fear. They’ve been doing this especially now that their market share is shrinking due to social media. This can create a very distorted view of any country when looked at through the prism of the media.
Crime is very localized in the U.S. We’re talking generally a few square miles. Within those areas of high crime, yes, you have to be careful. I work in an ‘inner city’ – an area of high crime – and have worked there for over 10 years and though there have been several gun killings, most people go around and do their business. And that’s the most dangerous area. I wouldn’t choose to move there, but that’s the worst case scenario.
Most areas of the U.S. are very low crime. So the answer is it depends where you live. For example, Philadelphia is considered in general to have high crime. Yes, if you move to North~~east~~ Philly, for instance, you’re going to have to be more careful. But if you move to many other areas of Philly you don’t walk around worried you’ll be shot. Here are some stats. [https://data.philly.com/philly/crime/](https://data.philly.com/philly/crime/)
Health insurance: I don’t know how it is for non citizens. How will you be finding a job? If you have a salaried job, or even many hourly jobs, you can get health insurance through your employer. You’ll have to be more specific here–what work are you planning on doing when/if you get here?
Gun problems? Stay out of the drug trade and gang activity and it’s hardly an issue at all.
Healthcare – it’s varies, wildly. Anecdotally, I know a few people who have had serious, expensive health issues and they’re not financially crippled at all. They’re not wealthy people by any means but they were insured.
Guns are sometimes common depending on where you are, but are mostly unseen with concealed carry laws. Generally any big city has strict gun laws. The US is not the wild west like on TV. Rural areas have higher rates of gun ownership because the closest cop could be 30 minutes away in an emergency, and we also have many large dangerous predator animals in rural or wilderness areas (black bear, brown bear, wolf, cougar, coyote, bobcat, fox, etc. )
Health insurance exists for a reason. Most people are not paying the crazy bills you see online. Those are what The hospital bills your insurance and are often negotiable. The hospitals bill high, the insurance beats them up over the cost, they settle inn the middle, you pay up to your deductible stipulated in your insurance plan.
I’d bet 90%of people online complaining about guns amd insurance have never seen or held a gun, and are also on their parents insurance plans.
Relax, the US is a great and very safe place to live. Don’t beleive what you see in media.
I’m currently paying a $4k ambulance bill and another 4ish k for the ER. The hospital had good financialadios though, it was like 800 and I stayed for three nights. I love the nature here too, but fuck it can get depressing with healthcare.
Wouldn’t worry about guns unless you live in a bad neighborhood.
Healthcare… it really does depend. I’ve worked for an insurance company and let me tell you… just hope you stay healthy and have no accidents.
No.
Think of it this way: Think about something you know a lot about, and then go to that subreddit. Then find a front page thread about that thing.
And you’ll see all manner of bullshit. Stuff you know is wrong, misunderstood, or misrepresented.
You should apply that same skepticism to everything else on Reddit.
The more I read about stuff I know about, the less I believe about stuff I don’t know about.
Gun problems… Absolutely not for most areas. For a few areas they are a major problem.
Health care can be a pretty big problem in some cases. Depends on how much money you make depends on your insurance policy depends on a lot of things.
No. Most jobs offer insurance, and I’ve gone my entire life not being affected personally by gun violence.
The only gun problems 99% of Americans deal with are ammo prices and the occasional jam/misfeed
I got shot writing this comment and I’m waiting for an Uber to take to the hospital because ambulance rides are $5,000.
2/3 of gun deaths in the US are suicides. People being shot at random is very rare, even if the media makes it seem like leaving your house is a death sentence.
i live in baltimore and i’ve never seen a gun here in person.
Are these problems that need to be improved? Yes.
Gun violence is not something that impacts the daily life of an average American, and in my experience it is usually gang related. So be aware of your surroundings and don’t get involved in gangs.
Get insurance. Easier said than done for many people, but make it a priority in your budget. Best case scenario is that you will get an employer to cover this cost, if not there are a lot of government programs to help pay and purchase.
Guns not necessarily but health care and cost of higher education? Yes. I pay almost 1000 a month for insurance and my employer pays another 2000. My son’s college degree has left us with about 80k of student loan debt.
If you’re employed, your employer will provide health insurance. If you’re broke, medicaid exists, which is basically state funded health insurance for poor people. The system isn’t perfect, but reddit would have you believe that people are really paying 150,000 out of pocket on the regular for a broken toe. That said, if the hospital or doctor you have is out of network, there will be some problems unless it’s emergency care–in which case it is state mandated that your insurance cover you regardless. Still, be sure to identify which medical facilities are within your network before you find yourself needing aid. I feel like I’m forgetting something but anyone is welcome to add or correct this.
Gun Violence is extremely overblown by the media. Healthcare is garbage.
Just as a rule of thumb, nothing is as bad as Reddit says it is.
As strange as it sounds, I worry more about health care than guns.
I (37m) was born and raised in New York metro area, I now live in Philadelphia. I’ve never seen a gun, and I’ve never been a victim of a crime.
There’s are good areas and rough areas. Choose where you want to live.
It entirely depends on where you live re: guns. I see a lot of people saying it’s not a problem at all, but where I live I fear for my life. Just be sure to research the city before you move there.
Healthcare in terms of price is horrible but the quality of care you get may be higher depending on where you’re coming from. If you maintain a good job you won’t have to worry as much.
Hi American here! It seems like you got plenty of responses but, hell, one more cent hurt!
Guns: really depends on where you live but it’s not really that awful. I think we’re more aware of certain risks but it’s not something that you’re going to actually deal with.
Healthcare: either get it from your employer or it’s expensive
I will say the gun thing feels very rare to me. Never encountered a gun except for a hunting rifle my neighbor had. As for medical care…. That shit is insane and yes I do avoid the doctor because of it. But it’s not usually because of like $20k+ bills, more like $500+
Gun problems are greatly exaggerated by the media. You’re far far more likely to die from a car crash than to be shot by a stranger for no reason. Most shootings are between stupid people getting into sketchy crap. I live in Tennessee and barely know anybody who owns a gun.
Healthcare is as big of a problem as the internet makes it sound though. I’m not going to the hospital unless I think I’m going to die or have a body part amputated because just about anything remotely serious will cost me thousands of dollars