Medical expenses for major problems can very easily run into the millions of US dollars (open heart surgery, etc). I'm not joking. The market for private insur

Medical expenses for major problems can very easily run into the millions of US dollars (open heart surgery, etc). I'm not joking. The market for private insurance is somewhat better now with Obamacare (depending heavily upon the state you live in) but it still can be very expensive. Especially if you're unemployed. If you have a family member in poor health, employer-sponsored health coverage can be worth an order of magnitude more than your cash salary. If not more.