Most Americans have insurance through their employers and what that would entail is what's called co-pay. Every time you see a doctor or need to have a hospital visit, you have to make a payment in addition to what your employer would pay or what your insurance would pay. Usually, it's very minimal and it's probably, $10. But some are $20, some are $50. It’s designed to keep people from running to the hospital for every single little thing because they know they have to pay a small amount, too, which is a very fair system. If you don't have insurance, one of two things could happen; if you go to a private hospital some hospitals might accept you as an indigent (very poor) person. They have plans that are intended to pay for your care. Otherwise, you'd go to a state hospital and the service there is pretty minimal. You don't get the best care you can get, but you get, for the most part, adequate care. If you live in a very large city like New York or Los Angeles and don't have insurance, it might be more difficult to get healthcare from a state hospital.

The employer pays part of the health insurance expense. He has a contract with an insurance agent, and with Hospital. The city pays a certain amount for your insurance, and out every paycheck that you get you pay a certain amount. It depends on whether you're single or whether you have a wife and whether you have children. If you have a wife, so you pay about $30 to $40 per paycheck towards insurance. The city pays $30 to $40 per paycheck and then each time you see a doctor you have to pay the co-pay of $10. And your wife does the same.

When you have children your insurance will extend to cover them as well.

Actually, there are only two options on your plan. One is to be an individual and the other is to have a family plan. So you have a family plan to cover, your wife, and your children.

If your wife is expecting a child each time she goes to see the doctor she'll pay $10. And when the baby is finally ready to be born she will pay $10 and be admitted to the hospital. And if there's any kind of emergency or anything else there's no extra payment.

So if there’s a one-day stay that's what she'll have. If she needs a one-week stay she'll have that. There won't be any extra fee. It'll all be covered under the insurance.

On average women stay in the hospital one day when they have babies.

And on most plans woman can go home the very same day they have a baby. But it's their option they wish to stay at least one day and if there are any complications she can stay longer. Unfortunately, with the expense of medical care, it's in the hospital's best interest to have the woman leave as early as possible to free up the bed for another patient. So they sometimes might rush the patient's discharge from the hospital.

They have a choice what doctor they pick for themselves.

They picked one doctor and ended up not liking that doctor. So they switched to another doctor that they are much happier with.

It affects the doctor that you stop seeing, because they no longer receive payment. They receive payment from the insurance. If you don't have insurance, they receive the payment from you. So it's a way of casting a consumer’s vote, so to speak, that you don't see a doctor that you aren't happy with. Then they'll hopefully get the message that they need to change the way they practice.

If somebody has a cold or the flue, that's a fairly common illness. Generally they'll just take a day off from work and stay home and wait till it passes. There are very few drugs out there that are going to eliminate a cold or the flue. Usually it’s something that you just have to get through. But if it's something a little bit more serious, generally you can call up and make an appointment to go and see a doctor. If it's something very serious you just go right to the hospital and get admitted immediately.

If there's an emergency, you just dial 911 and that reaches the police dispatch. And if there's any kind of medical emergency they'll immediately get an ambulance on the way. Otherwise, for instance, if you're giving birth or something and it looks a little serious you could call the hospital directly. And they can dispatch an ambulance.

If you have money, you can pay for the extra service that maybe shouldn't be given to everybody. But certainly everybody deserves a minimum. And everybody has that minimum in the United States in a relatively reasonable amount of time.

As far as dental care is concerned, it is pretty much similar to regular health care.

You can belong to a Dental Maintenance Organization where you pay a fee and almost everything is covered. The plan that you belong to is very similar to medical insurance in that you pay co-pay each time you see the dentist. And for certain things like crowns, dentures there's a fixed schedule of fees that you have to pay also in addition to your regular insurance. But what are covered completely are dental visits twice a year. The most important thing you can do for your teeth anyhow is to see your dentist twice a year, have your teeth cleaned and checked, and have any fixed immediately. And that avoids future problems.

Options and pay ranges

Bachelor’s degrees are very limiting in the field of psychology. The starting salary for people with a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1997 was approximately 20,600 dollars. With this degree it is possible to work in a psychiatric hospital or residential home as a psychiatric assistant or technician. This work allows a large amount of interaction with patients, specifically, observing and recording their moods and behaviors. Unfortunately a psychiatric assistant does not have much influence with regards to the patient’s treatment plan. Furthermore, licensure is not possible with a bachelor’s degree alone.

Master’s degrees require at least 2 years of full-time graduate study. Other requirements may include an internship in an applied setting and an original research project called a thesis. In 1997, the average salary with a master’s degree was 40,000 dollars. Master’s level jobs include working in group practices, hospitals, clinics, community health centers, and government offices. In most states master’s degrees are not granted licensure. It is possible to practice therapy with a master’s degree, but only under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. Master’s degrees clearly offer better pay and responsibilities than a bachelor’s degree.

Clinical and counseling psychology offers two doctoral degrees: the Ph.D. and Psy. D. Both are equally challenging, require the same amount of educational training, qualify for licensure, and earn about the same salary (57,000 dollars in 1997).Most doctoral educational programs are designed to last 5 years; however, they often take 7 or 8 to complete. Ph.D. programs are designed more for training in research, while Psy.D. programs emphasize the counseling aspect of psychology. Almost all of psychologists with a Psy. D. can be found practicing psychology in counseling settings. Although, psychologists possessing a Ph.D. can also practice, they are more likely to be involved in research or teaching within the higher education system. Doctoral level psychologists also have ability to obtain licensure and go into private practice. This cannot be achieved with either a bachelor’s or master’s degree. Furthermore, doctoral degrees provide more job opportunities and job flexibility than the other degrees.

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Профессора В.Ф. Воино-Ясенецкого Министерства здравоохранения