fatbrit

Well that's certainly a first -- somebody coming to the US for the healthcare system! You may like to search on here for some of the threads on this board about the differences between the UK and US healthcare systems as perceived by both employees and consumers...interesting reading.

englishnurse

yes i did look it really is quite interesting especially being someone who works within the system and is not just a service user surely the hospitals are cleaner and better staffed? the pay also outstrips my salary here by about 4-5 times! how do find the health system compares? good or bad?

fatbrit

As a user, I see a glossy shine masking a totally inefficient, unfair and corrupt system where the primary goal of the providers is only to make money. Give me the NHS, warts and all, any day!

englishnurse

argggg!!!!! am cancelling greencard application
actually it will be strange i love the healthcare free for all slant on things trouble is its all going tits up on the quiet at least i might get a bit of time off in the usa!!! heheh

fatbrit

Whereabout's are you heading in the US?

Time off? Don't think that's an American word!

cindyabs

The pay for those in the healthcare system is nothing to be sneezed at!! They're always advertising for healthcare workers here!!

inquisitive40

Varies widely from state to state. We lived in St Louis and the good hospitals there we real nice. Here in CA the hospitals seem more like Irish hospitals, smaller rooms, less staff etc.

The whole medical system here is also under fire and there are many staffing problems in the hospitals. My wife works as a claims adjuster and she sees the huge differences between different HMOs and also the differencse in service.

There are a lot of doctors here more driven by money than by ethics. Also the pay may be more BUT that is very dependent then on the cost of living in the area you are working. Here in CA the cost of living is very high and so what seems like a good wage only comes even with a wage in a state with lower costs of living and sometimes only a third of the wage.

Have you done all the math between the state you are going and the wage to cost of living ratios? I personally have about the same standard of living here in the US as I did back in Ireland YET we have two wages and about 5 times the income.

Patrick

fatbrit

Precisely!

Good pay, no takers. Where's the problem here?

Noorah101

Fatbrit,

Do you know of a website where I can order credit reports from all 3 reporting agencies....preferable a free report?

Thanks!
Rene

cindyabs

I volunteered as a Candy Striper and then worked as a nurse's aide when I was a teenager. Had I gone through with nurse's training I would be making double what I do now.

fatbrit

If you haven't done it yet, get them free from https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp. You get one shot per person per year.

Additionally, you get a free look everytime you're turned down for credit or get it on less favourable terms -- read the instructions on the letter the lender sent you.

Alternatively, just buy the report directly at the individual bureaus.

I personally don't like buying my report off third parties or the monitoring packages the bureaus put together. It's a total rip-off.

cindyabs

Seems like I had heard that the everybody was going to be able to get a credit report free a year-some states have that now as a matter of fact.

fatbrit

Yup -- if you go to the link, there's a map showing the roll-out days.

sas

When I first started on the credit path I got a secured card from Washington Mutual (now a Citi card) fee is $35 a year and I put down $1000 security. They put the security into an 18 month CD that returns about 4% so when I get it back it will cover the annual fees.

1 year later I have unsecured cards from MBNA and Bank of America, a car loan and in 2 weeks a mortgage :scared: and my cerdit score is 690

Noorah101

Thanks for that link! I have one more question. On all my husband's official documents (SS card, passport, etc) he has a two-word last name with no hyphen. Since that name is so long, his charge cards and bank statements have him listed as just the first part of his last name. When I fill out the on-line credit report request, should I use his full two-word last name as is on his SS card, or the shortened version which is on the credit cards??

Just wondered if they go by name as much, or by SS number.

Oh...and also...Sadegh hasn't lived here 2 years yet. Where it asks for previous address, should I put his address where he lived in Turkey??

Any advice?
Thanks,
Rene