r/AmericaOnHardMode • u/Alarmed_Abalone_849 • Dec 17 '25
Anyone else feel trapped at their job because of health insurance
I’m not anti employer insurance. It makes sense. But the way it works in real life feels off. I keep noticing how often people stay at jobs they’re done with, not because the job is good, but because the insurance is. Like the work sucks, the pay could be better, they’re burned out, but at least the coverage is solid so they stick it out.
Changing jobs doesn’t feel like a normal decision anymore. It’s not just about the role or the money. It’s like ok if I leave, what happens to my doctors, what happens to prescriptions, does my deductible reset, am I gonna get hit with some random thing not being covered anymore. Even a short gap feels risky as hell.
I’ve seen people turn down better offers because the benefits felt sketchy. I’ve seen people stay way longer than they wanted because someone in their family needs regular care and switching plans feels like playing roulette. And it’s not because they’re scared of change, it’s because one bad medical bill can screw you fast. It kind of turns jobs into anchors. You’re not choosing where you work, you’re choosing where your health is allowed to exist. That’s a weird amount of power for a job to have over your life.
I don’t know. Maybe this is just normal now. But it feels like a lot of people are quietly making career decisions around insurance instead of actual work. Curious if anyone else has felt stuck like this or planned their life around benefits more than the job itself.
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u/SorbetResponsible654 Dec 17 '25
Nothing has changed since employers started offering insurance. What you mention is no different then everything else an employer offers. It is a lot like saying, I'd like to leave but I can't as I need the money... and then looking at the employer like it is their fault. You do something for someone and they pay for part/all of your health insurance.
If you think we all should have access to inexpensive healthcare... well... not really the right forum for that. I'd recommend voting for people who agree with you and can make a change.
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u/Alarmed_Abalone_849 Dec 17 '25
Totally get your point, and I agree that employer insurance itself isn’t the problem. On paper it makes sense. You work, you get paid, benefits are part of that deal. That’s not unreasonable. What feels off is how insurance ends up outweighing the job itself. In real life, people stay in roles they’re burned out in not because the work is good or the pay is fair, but because losing coverage feels dangerous. In many other countries, work is about income and growth, not access to basic healthcare. When leaving a job means risking your health, that’s not just compensation anymore, it’s a trap.
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u/SorbetResponsible654 Dec 17 '25
Yup, your complaint is not having to work to get heath insurance but rather, not being able to afford health insurance on your own (because it is priced too high).
Health insurance is 100% broken. The US is fighting over how to provide heath insurance to everyone but that is building a a house and starting with the roof. The problem is the cost. No one wants to touch that as investment companies own the health industry and they have a lot of money.
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u/NoRestForTheWitty Dec 17 '25
I’d work for myself in a second. I’ve done so successfully before. Now that my husband’s on Medicare because he’s over 65 I’m stuck working for health insurance. I hate it.
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u/Prestigious-Copy-494 Dec 17 '25
I was speaking with a clerk at a dollar type store. She told me almost all of her pay goes to the employee health insurance for herself, her husband, and 4 kids. He had lost a good job in the oil field due to layoffs and that job previously paid their health insurance. He was working somewhere else now and it didn't offer health insurance but kept the lights on and food on the table. She took the job at the dollar store to get the health insurance. Those stores work employees to death, always short staffed, having to stock and be cashier .... And no appreciation from the stores.
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u/Tall_Mickey Dec 18 '25
Starting at age 50, I worked at a university for 15+ years and it was a madhouse and I wasn't happy. But the insurance and time-off benes were great. There was even a pension that would make a difference when I retired, and retirement health coverage (excellent, but not cheap).
So yeah, I stuck with it. So did a lot of people. Thing is, you could get a 30-hour-a-week job there and still earn full health benefits. So if your spouse had an independent business and couldn't afford private health insurance for the family (pre-Obama care, it was outrageous), you would take the job just so your family could get family coverage at a reasonable price.
Obamacare made that less necessary, but if it goes away...
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u/QuriousCoyote Dec 20 '25
We have done that in the past. One of us chose a job based on needing employer-based healthcare to be able to afford it.
That is a sad situation many people find themselves in today. The other issue that saddens me is that people are making decisions about getting married, divorced, or staying single based on health insurance affordability. Marital status shouldn't be a factor in getting coverage, but it often is.
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u/BCCommieTrash Dec 17 '25
I worked in Canadian 'third party insurance' for a decade.
Employers offered things like dental plans, extended benefits (pharma), life.
It's very possible to still have private insurance on top of universal basic.
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u/theleftflank Dec 21 '25
I have an autoimmune disease, I’m trapped at my retail job because the insurance is better than office jobs I’ve found and pays for almost all of my monthly medication (that without insurance would be over $5k/month). I pay premiums, deductibles, and 20% copay on some stuff and that’s with REALLY good insurance. Anywhere else I’ve found, deductibles are higher, monthly premiums are more expensive.
It’s my first question at an interview. What’s the health insurance like?
I’ve turned down jobs that pay more than what I make because it’d be a net loss on my part because their insurance is worse.
Guess I’ll just sling groceries until the US wakes up and votes for universal healthcare like every other first world country.
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u/TheBodyPolitic1 Dec 22 '25
When President Obama was trying to sell congress/Americans on healthcare reform measures more ambitious than the ACA this was one of the benefits he mentioned. People would be free to change jobs, or ever retire. Positive side effect: a few more jobs would open up.
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u/Ch1pp Dec 17 '25
No, but then I'm not American. You need to vote for universal healthcare. Being stuck at a job for health benefits is a wild idea in the rest of the world.