Santorum Tells Sick Kid Market Should Set Drug Prices

[Tyche]

I have to side with demo. My mother is a single mother who had to buy out my father so she has paid for the house. Right outside nyc, so we are taxed out the ass, I think its the top school tax in new york...

She owns a maxima, the house and we take a vacation each year. She makes anywhere from 90k to 150k depending on a given year closer to the 90k with citibanks bonus funds close to shit.

I have 3 ways of getting healthcare... my mo thanks to obama, my one job(union shop) or my second job that offers it as well. I'm lucky as hell but I find it hard to feel bad at times, you really can't get one job with healthcare? Really....? Fuck I have a pension and 401 k...

In closeing... you don't need a ton of money to come out living in a decent area.

It's not just the fact people can't find a job offering healthcare, it's that they can't afford it. My last job paid around $11 an hour, small company with lots of older employees. High risk pool. Family health insurance was $125 a week. That's $500 a month on top of the thousands you may have to pay for receiving care that the insurance isn't covering, part of your deductible, or the percentage you're responsible for.

[archibaldcrane]

I have 3 ways of getting healthcare... my mo thanks to obama, my one job(union shop) or my second job that offers it as well. I'm lucky as hell but I find it hard to feel bad at times, you really can't get one job with healthcare? Really....? Fuck I have a pension and 401 k...

Shit's situational. I make 6-figures but have absolutely no benefits - no 401k, no health care, no paid time off, nothing. That being said I used to scratch by for 3 or 4 years making under 30k/year in Los Angeles. Doable but not particularly fun.

[Callisto]

I have 3 ways of getting healthcare... my mo thanks to obama, my one job(union shop) or my second job that offers it as well. I'm lucky as hell but I find it hard to feel bad at times, you really can't get one job with healthcare? Really....? Fuck I have a pension and 401 k...

Very dependent on line of work. I have what I would consider a 'normal' desk job. I'm above entry-level, but below middle management. The overwhelming majority of companies in this area no longer hire employees directly. They use temp agencies, at best do temp-to-hire after a few months, but often just can the employee during the slow times. Of the money the company pays to the agency for the employee to be there, the agency gets about 40%~, the employee gets 60%~. The agencies generally do not offer health care or retirement benefits, and if you're lucky, if you've been in the position over 6 months for every two days of holidays the employee is forced to take off(2 each for Thanksgiving/Christmas, etc.) you get paid for one of them.

At best the agency will have a deal with an insurance company where you can get a slight discount on paying for your own unsubsidized insurance out-of-pocket. The employers do this because the fee for the agency is less than what they'd pay to give you benefits, and they can fire you with no severance. Unless you have a degree and a few years of experience you're probably stuck in this boat.

[Callisto]

do you live in the suburbs or in the actual city? when I decided to move here full-time I was SHOCKED at how cheap rent is, even for quality properties. everything is cheaper here compared to NYC, except public transport.

Suburbs, non-shitty ones though

[Callisto]

Also, I am now a full employee, but have to wait 6 months before I'm allowed to sign up for insurance.

[Demosthenes11]

75k/year is living comfortably but almost paycheck to paycheck for a single person in NYC, unless you go waaaaaaaay out into the boroughs and accept a hideous commute. that being said, you could live quite luxuriously and freely on 40-50k in chicago. my friend lives off something like 9k/year comfortably in louisiana, it just depends on location.

unless you are paying 10k a month for rent, that's just not true.

[solanis]

Suburbs, non-shitty ones though

well, can't be worse than the south side. no amount of money makes living here not-terrible.

unless you are paying 10k a month for rent, that's just not true.

wishful thinking. NYC taxes ream that amount, and if you can find something better than a shoebox for 1.5k/month you're extremely lucky. everything in the city is expensive, from food prices to your aerobics classes. you can save some money while trying to live a comfortable life on 75k, but it won't be very much at all. you'd have to make cutbacks in your lifestyle to the point that living in the city isn't worthwhile. NYC requires some no-joke sacrifices, as I'm sure zetanio can attest to.

[archibaldcrane]

Good thing about NYC though is you can eliminate your car payment and auto insurance.

[Demosthenes11]

Good thing about NYC though is you can eliminate your car payment and auto insurance.

which apparently means that either rent is 5x what it is in SF, or food is 5x the cost, or to be a new yorker, you have to burn a wheelbarrow full of money once a year.

If you are a single person in NYC making 75k a year and struggling to make ends meet, you are either a) fucking retarded, or b) really fucking retarded

[solanis]

you won't struggle to make ends meet, you just won't be saving much at all, as opposed to making 75k preeeeetty much anywhere else. pipe down kiddo, good lord

[notorious bum]

Probably the same shallow crowd that blows money everyday eating at restaurants, constantly buying shit they don't need, high-tech gadgets every month, etc.

If you're not banking thousands a month on $75/yr then you deserve to be homeless and swallow the pill of humility for awhile.

[Demosthenes11]

you won't struggle to make ends meet, you just won't be saving much at all, as opposed to making 75k preeeeetty much anywhere else. pipe down kiddo, good lord

tell me where that money goes then. on 75k a year, you are paying about 22k in state+federal taxes. So your take home is about 53k. Now let's spread that over 12 months, so 4.4k per month. Now lets say you are paying back 500 per month for student loans (high end), gas + insurance costs you about 400 per month (high end), 100 for utilities (high end), and 600 on food (high end). We'll throw in a few more hundred for misc stuff like tv, internet, etc - lets say 300.

That leaves you with 2.5k a month for just rent. If you can't put away at least 600-700 away per month, you fucking suck at living.

my point: stop being full of shit

[solanis]

you have wishful thinking about the kind of life you can afford with good savings in NYC on that kind of salary, especially after NY taxes ream you out the ass. just sayin.

tell me where that money goes then. on 75k a year, you are paying about 22k in state+federal taxes. So your take home is about 53k. Now let's spread that over 12 months, so 4.4k per month. Now lets say you are paying back 500 per month for student loans (high end), gas + insurance costs you about 400 per month (high end), 100 for utilities (high end), and 600 on food (high end). We'll throw in a few more hundred for misc stuff like tv, internet, etc - lets say 300.

That leaves you with 2.5k a month for just rent. If you can't put away at least 600-700 away per month, you fucking suck at living.

my point: stop being full of shit

500 a month on loans is wishful thinking, 600 a month on food in NYC is not high end, 400 per month on incurance is not high end, 100 on utilities isn't high end, etc etc. all of the expenses you're quoting would make sense in a less expensive city, but not NYC. I'm guessing you're not from the area? if you can bank 500-1000 a month after expenses and living a life that makes the NYC prices worthwhile, you'd be fortunate and a little frugal, and 6-12k savings a year is a little frightening at such a high salary. if you have to live a life without vacations, eating out, nice clothing and all the other benefits NYC can provide, why bother living there? go to the suburbs and save your cash. 75k/year won't buy you a plantation in the south, but it'll get you a much higher standard of living with much higher savings. it's not poverty in nyc, but it's waaaay below average and it doesn't bode well for you if that's where you're at when you've decided to start a family.

[Demosthenes11]

I looked. your taxes would be 22k a year.

and those costs have nothing to do with where you live. If you are paying $20 a day on food, you are irresponsible. 400 on insurance? you are a shit driver or didnt shop around. 100 on electricity/garbage/gas for 1 person? stop leaving your shit on. more than 500 on student loans per month? you arent even trying to decrease those payments.

[Indalecia]

75k/year is living comfortably but almost paycheck to paycheck for a single person in NYC, unless you go waaaaaaaay out into the boroughs and accept a hideous commute. that being said, you could live quite luxuriously and freely on 40-50k in chicago. my friend lives off something like 9k/year comfortably in louisiana, it just depends on location.

No property tax in LA. Once you own the place you live, price of living crashes

[Callisto]

crashes into Mexico, maybe

[solanis]

and those costs have nothing to do with where you live. If you are paying $20 a day on food, you are irresponsible.

this in particular shows you don't know what you're talking about in regards to NYC prices. I forgive you.

[Demosthenes11]

this in particular shows you don't know what you're talking about in regards to NYC prices. I forgive you.

I forgot NYC has a 300% markup on groceries.

If you eat out for every meal, it's easy to spend $20. But if you make yourself lunch for work, and dinner at night, you won't spend anywhere near $20 a day

[solanis]

if you're making 75k and you have to live so frugally that you have to bring a bagged lunch with you to work and can never go out to eat, that says a lot about prices in new york. I guess you've proved my point despite being really ignorant about prices in the city, thank you

[Demosthenes11]

ITT: making your own food makes you a pauper