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> in four years they will have a year’s salary saved up. That assumes no unexpected expenditure though? Any medical emergency (and even a lot of non-emergenci

> in four years they will have a year’s salary saved up. That assumes no unexpected expenditure though? Any medical emergency (and even a lot of non-emergencies) in the US (from what I've seen) would blow those savings quickly. Also car problems, child problems, storm damaging the house/apartment, any number of things can swallow those savings quickly and you're back to square one.

graeme 6y ago
Oh right. I’m Canadian, so I forget how tied to their jobs Americans are. Though the non medical ones you mention can generally be handled by insurance. That usually is not tied to work. If you have a year’s savings you can generally afford insurance.
- lotsofpulp 6y ago
  Americans aren’t tied to their jobs because of health insurance. Anyone can purchase it on healthcare.gov. They’re tied to their jobs because healthcare costs so much. It’s unaffordable to pay $400+ per person per month plus up to $8k for out of pocket max which resets every calendar year ($16k for family) without having a job. The $400 per person is for a young person. It goes up to $1,000 per month as you get into 50s/60s. So if you’re being prudent and factoring in the probability of not having income in your 50s/60s (age discrimination, disability, obviated from automation, outsourced), then you also need to save to plan to pay at least $12k a year in today’s money plus out of pocket maximum.
- zimpenfish 6y ago
  > so I forget how tied to their jobs Americans are. That's another thing - aren't most of them in at-will employment? Meaning they can be let go with almost no reason with no notice at any time. That's also going to put a dint in the savings.
refurb 6y ago
Just because some people might have an unexpected expenditure doesn't mean the OP's comment isn't true. Something can always go wrong, but it doesn't happen to everyone.

graeme 6y ago

Oh right. I’m Canadian, so I forget how tied to their jobs Americans are. Though the non medical ones you mention can generally be handled by insurance. That usually is not tied to work. If you have a year’s savings you can generally afford insurance.

lotsofpulp 6y ago
Americans aren’t tied to their jobs because of health insurance. Anyone can purchase it on healthcare.gov. They’re tied to their jobs because healthcare costs so much. It’s unaffordable to pay $400+ per person per month plus up to $8k for out of pocket max which resets every calendar year ($16k for family) without having a job. The $400 per person is for a young person. It goes up to $1,000 per month as you get into 50s/60s. So if you’re being prudent and factoring in the probability of not having income in your 50s/60s (age discrimination, disability, obviated from automation, outsourced), then you also need to save to plan to pay at least $12k a year in today’s money plus out of pocket maximum.
zimpenfish 6y ago
> so I forget how tied to their jobs Americans are. That's another thing - aren't most of them in at-will employment? Meaning they can be let go with almost no reason with no notice at any time. That's also going to put a dint in the savings.

refurb 6y ago

Just because some people might have an unexpected expenditure doesn't mean the OP's comment isn't true. Something can always go wrong, but it doesn't happen to everyone.