What Germany’s Coal Miners Can Teach America About Medical Debt

Two hands reach up to a heart with a medical cross inside it

From Noam N. Levey / KFF Health News: Germany, like the U.S., has a largely private healthcare system that relies on private doctors and private insurers. Like Americans, many Germans enroll in a health plan through work, splitting the cost with their employer. But Germany strictly limits how much patients have to pay out of their own pockets for a trip to the doctor, the hospital, or the pharmacy, making medical debt practically nonexistent.

Read the original story here.

Read more articles on healthcare systems related to wellbeing.

More Resources:

From Emma Peaslee / NPR: A guaranteed income pilot program in Stockton, California, resulted in improved mental health and even increased full-time employment rates. The extra cash gave recipients who were struggling with poverty the mental and financial bandwidth to...

From Tiffany Camhi / OPB: Volunteers of the PDX Housing Solidarity Project are working to redistribute generational wealth through homeownership in Portland. The project connects people with ample resources to Black and Indigenous homebuyers and helps facilitate cash gifts, no-interest...

Dr Courtney Howard is an Emergency Physician in Yellowknife, and is a nationally- and globally-recognized expert on the impacts of climate change on health, and in the broader field of planetary health. As the first female board President of the...

Alexandra Quinn, CEO of Health Leads, has extensive experience in the non-profit and governmental sectors, focusing on equity, justice, education, and health. Her leadership builds on years of collaboration with healthcare systems, public health, and community partners nationwide. Health Leads...

From Katharine Houreld / The Washington Post: GiveDirectly runs a program that gives a lump sum of cash directly to those in need, without needing to qualify with other specifications (such as school enrollment or vaccination status). Lump sum funds...

Luis Camargo is the Founder and Director of the Organization for Environmental Education and Protection (OpEPA). OpEPA is a non-profit organization that holds registrations in both Colombia and the USA and is dedicated to promoting nature-based and regenerative education, heritage...

We use cookies to improve your experience on our website. By continuing to browse, you agree to our use of cookies. For more details, please see our Privacy Policy.