I’m no stranger to the bureaucratic paperwork nightmares of Germany but this hasn’t really applied to us with healthcare related stuff. Wait times at walk-in clinics has been relatively short and the care has been thorough and good. We have more coverage, prescriptions and overall out of pocket expenses are way cheaper. We are getting older and my wife was having some anxiety about her health so I told her get all the testing you want, we’ll submit it all for reimbursement and just pay out of pocket for what they wont cover. She got a full physical, blood/stool/urine work, and a full body ultrasound. All of it was reimbursed(we are on private insurance, but we go to facilities that also provide care for public insurance). That’s just a bit about my limited experience in Frankfurt but overall we have been much happier with it.

Agreed. Wife and I have been in Germany for a year and a half and we love it. When we were unemployed and taking language courses, health insurance was 100€ per month for both of us. And our coverage was way better than our mid tier insurance in the US at $600 a month.

This is correct. Budget Reconciliation bypasses the filibuster rules and only needs 51 votes(this includes the VP) to pass(like earlier this year) but the standard budget legislation that happens this time of year does not bypass it and requires super majority of 60 votes to pass.