Armstrong is an American from rural Pennsylvania, she [became a single mother](https://youtu.be/DKxwNgaNbYo?t=67) after high school and could not go to college because her parents did not have the money to pay for it. Armstrong’s mother developed a breast tumor in the 1990s and her father had leukemia, she had seen how both went into medical debt and had to work nearly until the end of their lives to pay for therapy. So when Armstrong fell in love with a German man and the time came to decide in which country they want to live “I literally made a pros and cons list: If we should get married and a worst-case scenario happens, where are we better off? One loses a job, goes unemployed, or gets really sick. When I started researching, consistently over and over again life was better in Germany.” https://youtu.be/DKxwNgaNbYo?t=227
Her research was unfortunately put to the test years later when she developed a brain tumor. Here is her video where she compares how much she paid for the diagnosis and operation in Germany vs how much she would have to pay out of pocket for co-payments with health insurance for the same treatment in the US: https://youtu.be/zHcwOgbsBYk?t=1305
She also developed a depression and is now in therapy for that: “I have a great therapist, he saved my life, and I will be continuing treatment with him for sure. And I feel like if I had still lived in America, I don’t know if I would have that chance. I don’t think I would have that money. I have friends and family in America that are trying to save up so that they can begin psychotherapy. It is really refreshing for me personally that I feel this country takes it serious, as serious as my brain tumor. So thankful.” https://youtu.be/bQUSwODxmD8?t=361
Armstrong is no longer able to work. She now lives on welfare which pays for her apartment and heating costs, for health insurance and she gets 449 euro per month for her other expenses.
She went to a rehab clinic for two weeks to see if her health can be improved. Her schedule there: https://youtu.be/vjQglfMsfpg?t=96
The outcome: “I am shocked, I am noticing improvements in my face a lot more than I have seen in over the last three years. More importantly for me, I think I am starting to get my smile back. (…) I am beyond impressed with the things that I am learning from balance training to the speech therapy. (…) I met with the Oberarzt, the top doctor. This guy seemed fantastic, he listened to me. I told him how thankful I am and how wonderful his therapists are. I told him about improvements that I have personally seen and that I can’t say thank you enough for the therapies. (…) If I had to sum up this week in three words, I would say thankful, corrected and motivated. I am incredibly thankful for the priceless therapy. Some of the things that I learned and therapy I received are just unbelievable and such a gift to me. And I am really glad I got some corrections on thinks I was doing wrong. I plan to work on this a lot. I can already feel my body adjusting. I still got a lot to work on but I already see improvements. I feel really motivated now.” https://youtu.be/VDAX-LtszR0?t=173
Her final thoughts on her decision to move to Germany: “I can not loud enough and often enough say how thankful I am to be in Germany and receive the healthcare and the treatment that one receives here. I really wish the people I love where I am from, back in America, I wish they could get this. I keep thinking of people I knew that were really sick, people I know that are sick. And how they are going into debt just trying to get their medication, forget all that facy-pants therapy that I’m getting. This what I’m getting here is something only rich people get where I’m from. It really makes me wonder how I got so lucky and why.” https://youtu.be/VDAX-LtszR0?t=1671
**Who qualifies for all of this?**
Everyone with health insurance qualifies for medical treatment (like the brain tumor operation in this case) and also for a therapist (e.g. for depression): https://www.reddit.com/r/germany/wiki/health_insurance
Everyone with permanent residence ([Niederlassungserlaubnis](https://service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/121864/en/) or [Daueraufenthalt-EU](https://service.berlin.de/dienstleistung/324281/en/)) qualifies for welfare and rehab in case of unemployment. German citizenship is not required. You get permanent residence:
– after 4 years with a job that is connected to your degree
– after 21 months with a Blue Card if you speak German level B1 or after 33 months with German level A1
– if you have graduated from a German university: 2 years after you have found a job that is connected to your degree
– after 3 years if you are self-employed or married to a German citizen
– after 5 years as a freelancer and in most other remaining cases
https://www.make-it-in-germany.com/en/visa-residence/living-permanently/settlement-permit
11 comments
i feel good for her. and i also thanks to the taxpayers in germany who contributed to make this happen. (including me). HONESTLY i feel so good when i see my tax money goes to people who need it, rather than filing some oligarch’s pocket. buuuuuuttt i hate people who suddenly became aware they are not the “best” in the world and want to move better countries shamelessly. some of them are even get shocked when they realize they had to go through same process for naturalization just like other third world country nationals. HOW DARE YOU? 😀
Glad she’s doing better. She seems like a good person.
I think, though, it’s important to note that Germany is not the outlier here for providing a decent social safety net for people who need it. The outlier is the US, a first-world country that’s being run like a third-world country led by a corrupt billionaire warlord.
This could be the start of the great “health insurance migration/tourism/exodus” 😀
But jokes aside: All poor american souls who are on the verge of going bankrupt just because they are sick and in need of treatment or medication deserve this kind of support. If it was up to me you’d all qualify for health insurance. I wish we could let you in on this RIGHT NOW. I’ve seen so many videos of American parents breaking down in tears because they can’t afford the insulin for their child.
It makes me cry too when I think of all the existences that have been crushed under insourmountable medical bills over in the US.
I am a former german student (m, 29), currently unemployed because of my depression. I’ve been hospitalized 8 times in the past 4 years and I’m so grateful for my insurance. Without it I wouldn’t be alive right now.
So happy for Armstrong! Stay strong everybody!
I was self-employed here in Germany from 2003 to 2008. I became a permanent resident and eventually got my citizenship. IN 2016, I slipped and fell and got a complex fracture (Smith’s fracture). I had to have several X-Rays, two surgeries and physical therapy. Thank God I was in Germany.
This is the reason why I don’t understand why some people claim the US is a better place to live than Germany / other European countries. If anyone who actually believes this could explain it to me, I would be grateful.
Maybe the con: for well earners almost 50% auf salary are used for taxes and mandatory social insurance contributions, not mention the 19% VAT for goods and other taxes and contributions in addition.
She had quiet a few details wrong / missing in her video:
– you pay aprox 14% of your brutto salary (up to a certain sum) for your healthcare.
– Your employer pays half of it (so 7%). This insurance is mandatory for both sides.
– You pay a lot more taxes in Germany than in the US. This increases with your income up to 42% of your salary. But you also get a lot of things included like unemployment insurance, pension funds, free education system etc
– you almost never have to co-pay for your medical treatment.
– you have to co-pay 5€ to 10€ per prescription at the pharmacy or a few € for physiotherapy. I remember that it was around 17€ total for 6 sessions.
– if you are below a certain income or unemployed your insurance will cover all your co-payments
– if you have to co-pay and it’s aprox more than 400€ per year you can deduct this in your tax filing
overall she is right: seeing a doctor or getting medical treatment is normally not an issue for anybody.
The system is based on solidarity, so everyone who can pay, has to. In my observation this is the reason why the US doesn’t have universal healthcare. The US population is generally not willing to pay for everybody and the greater good. Or at least they were conditioned to that mindset…
Edited and corrected for clarification
I keep reading about this lady here on Reddit. I have the feeling someone is promoting a YouTube channel here
The gavtvthat they wrote a researched Pro Con list about where to live kinda has the answer right in the question though doesn’t it LOL.
Is there a study or a link that compares European countries with Germany, in terms of how much the average citizen pays for health insurance, and what they get in return?
It’s kinda obvious that USA is not doing great in terms of affordable health insurance. Maybe it’s time to compare European countries with each other.