Popmartijn
Blue Crack Supplier
The entire point of insurance is that you HOPE you never need it. But we can never know this for sure, we don't know what lies in the future. Even the most healthy people can still get in accidents, or get cancer. Even if you minimizez the risks, there's still a chance. Sure, I bitch sometimes about paying for insurance I don't use. But then I think how goddamn lucky I am that I don't NEED to use it. It means I'm still healthy.
True and I think it's also related to the monthly HI premium we have to pay. The monthly premium for the basic (mandatory) coverage is about $125 - $150, on top of my head without using a currency converter. It differs a bit between which insurance company you're with, but that's about it. On top of that there's the yearly co-pay of $400 - $450 (I think) for specialist procedures and medicines. But anything higher and it's all covered by the insurance. This is mostly about 'necessary' procedures. Like when you need surgery for a broken bone, appendicites, cancer, etc.
I believe these costs are significantly lower than they are in the US. Hence, there's probably also less of an 'entitlement issue' (though some probably still feel like it).