Insurance company CEO assassinated in New York

[Flavour]

This guy deserves a nickname. I propose the Triple D Killer -- as in Defend, Deny, Depose

 

[WouldBe]

Oh, to be a fly on the wall in some of the boardrooms of those health insurance companies right now.

With an Uzi.

 

[Yossarian]

This guy deserves a nickname. I propose the Triple D Killer

That makes him sound as if he had very large breasts

 

[gosub]

That makes him sound as if he had very large breasts

Fits with Robert Paulson

 

[Orang Utan]

He’s more McCall than Paulson

 

[Santino]

 

[Yuwipi Woman]

My monthly tax and national insurance is less than Yuwipi Woman ‘s insurance. So we in fact pay low taxes compared to the US.
This is shocking to me and has destroyed the notion I had of the US as a tax haven of sorts compared to Western Europe.

I still have federal and state income tax, property taxes, sales and gasoline taxes on top of that.

Don't you'all have VAX though?

 

[Flavour]

crazy. the amount people pay in taxes and insurance a month in the US would be larger than the montly salaries of most working class people in southern and eastern europe

 

[littlebabyjesus]

I still have federal and state income tax, property taxes, sales and gasoline taxes on top of that.

Don't you'all have VAX though?

Do you mean VAT?

That's sales tax and it's much higher here than it is in the States. 20% on most things aside from basic food (not cake ) and a few other exceptions.

And petrol duty, cigarette duty, alcohol duty. All higher here, I think.

ETA: it's true enough that you still pay VAT however poor you are.

 

[Orang Utan]

I still have federal and state income tax, property taxes, sales and gasoline taxes on top of that.

Don't you'all have VAX though?

That’s a vaccum cleaner

 

[littlebabyjesus]

Or maybe it's biscuits that have VAT and not cake. There was a big court case when Jaffa Cakes were put to the test. IIRC, it was decided that they were cakes because they go hard when they get stale, while biscuits go soft when they get stale. And so therefore no VAT.

This was the subject of a legal argument in court.

 

[DaveCinzano]

Or maybe it's biscuits that have VAT and not cake. There was a big court case when Jaffa Cakes were put to the test. IIRC, it was decided that they were cakes because they go hard when they get stale, while biscuits go soft when they get stale. And so therefore no VAT.

This was the subject of a legal argument in court.

You forgot to tell her about the giant jaffa cake they baked and brought into court.

TELL HER ABOUT THE GIANT JAFFA CAKE

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

Yes. I have read there is a law that they can't just leave you lying on the road but you end up in (massive) debt.

Yeah, thousands of dollars if you're taken to hospital by ambulance, for starters.

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

One thing I didn't realise about US health insurance until reading all the discussion this has prompted online is that policies (not sure if all or just some) will set a lifetime cap on how many days you can have things like inpatient care. Some proper horror stories of patients literally on ventilators or with a basically non-existent immune system due to treatment they'd been having, suddenly finding they'd reached their max and their hospital care was no longer even partly covered after extortionate deductibles and copayments.

Bloody hell. So presumably doctors can't just turn-off life support (and effectively kill a patient), because that would presumably be against the Hippocratic oath (is that a thing over there?) unethical and probably illegal? So the patient would just continue to rack up debts?

 

[littlebabyjesus]

You forgot to tell her about the giant jaffa cake they baked and brought into court.

TELL HER ABOUT THE GIANT JAFFA CAKE

I'd forgotten that bit. Yes. That did happen.

And yes, clearly it is only chocolate-covered biscuits that incur the wrath of VAT. But not chocolate-covered cakes. Because that would be crazy.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

You forgot to tell her about the giant jaffa cake they baked and brought into court.

TELL HER ABOUT THE GIANT JAFFA CAKE

That is the absolute best bit of caselaw - a FUCKING GIANT JAFFA CAKE presented in the highest court in the land.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

That is the absolute best bit of caselaw - a FUCKING GIANT JAFFA CAKE presented in the highest court in the land.

And they won!

 

[AnnO'Neemus]

'We have 10,000 witnesses confirming that his name is Dave.'

Dave? Spartacus, surely?

 

[Orang Utan]

Yeah, thousands of dollars if you're taken to hospital by ambulance, for starters.

I read last week about a poor fella who got run over by an ambulance and was then charged by the ambulance company for taking him to the hospital

 

[DaveCinzano]

And they won!

They bribed the judge in open court - in front of the fucking stenographer! - with a giant biscuit cake; of course they won.

 

[Orang Utan]

so you can’t wake up from a coma and say to them, ‘thanks for keeping me alive. I didn’t ask you to though, and never signed anything agreeing to pay for any treatment, so I’ll be off home now thanks. I’ll send a card and a bottle of wine later as a token of appreciation cos I really am grateful’

 

[BigTom]

Or maybe it's biscuits that have VAT and not cake. There was a big court case when Jaffa Cakes were put to the test. IIRC, it was decided that they were cakes because they go hard when they get stale, while biscuits go soft when they get stale. And so therefore no VAT.

This was the subject of a legal argument in court.

There's also a similar case where Pringles tried to argue they were a cake and not crisps, because pringles are vacuum formed and not fried (I think, it was something to do with the different process they use to make pringles)... They lost.

 

[DotCommunist]

They found his backpack and reports say it was full of monopoly money. Not sure what thats about but lol.

 

[BigTom]

So they've apparently found his bag in central park... Full of monopoly money

Also a mobile phone which as per reddit I hope is a rickroll for the police.

This story just keeps on giving.

 

[emanymton]

Do you mean VAT?

That's sales tax and it's much higher here than it is in the States. 20% on most things aside from basic food (not cake ) and a few other exceptions.

And petrol duty, cigarette duty, alcohol duty. All higher here, I think.

ETA: it's true enough that you still pay VAT however poor you are.

At least here shops include it in the price they display.

 

[emanymton]

Question for the Americans, or anyone else who knows I guess.

I've see cases where the fire service is called out for emergency medical cases. Is that common? I assume it's because they are a actually emergency service and not a private company that will bill you like an ambulance?

 

[Petcha]

New picture of our man leaving Central Park in a taxi after ditching his bike, chatting to the driver....

 

[MickiQ]

No, that was for the week stay. But when we got home we got a further $1200 bill for some X-rays, not really relevant but there they tend to do loads of tests up front rather than the model here. The insurance company did pay in full. But you can see why Americans loose their houses if the get sick without insurance or if the insurance company declines to pay.

Tests in most countries are done to give the doctor more information, in the US they're done to give the hospital owners more money.

 

[yield]

I read last week about a poor fella who got run over by an ambulance and was then charged by the ambulance company for taking him to the hospital

Ambulance hits Oregon cyclist, rushes him to hospital, then sticks him with $1,800 bill, lawsuit says

The cyclist, who suffered a broken nose, was initially treated at the scene by the ambulance driver.

www.oregonlive.com

 

[moochedit]

I still have federal and state income tax, property taxes, sales and gasoline taxes on top of that.

Don't you'all have VAX though?

We have "VAT" (20% sales tax) and also "council tax" which funds local councils but is linked to the value of your home not your income.

(As well as income tax and national insurence which are income based).