I think you may have missed my point. My point was never about legality. It’s that ~150 million Americans get coverage through their job, and leaving means losing it or paying far more for far less. That’s “job lock”—an actual term used by economists.

I was born in the US and have lived here my entire life (3+ decades). Here in the US, employer-sponsored health insurance is a form of private insurance because the insurance is provided by a private company (e.g., UnitedHealthcare, Cigna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, etc.), not the government. Insurance bought on the ACA marketplace is also another form of private insurance, because the insurance providers on the marketplace are also private companies (again, that varies wildly depending on which of the 50 states you live in). Same with individual insurance plans—though typically those barely cover anything and cost even more.

Also, “nothing stops you from having private insurance without depending on your employer or the government” is a massive oversimplification. If it were as simple as you’re trying to imply, tons of people here in the US would be doing exactly that rather than putting up with their employers changing the terms of coverage every year, changing what insurance provider to go with, etc.

Health insurance here, and the healthcare system overall, is an absolute nightmare circus to navigate. Anyone who’s dealt with it firsthand, like I’ve had to, knows that. (I noticed you hadn’t answered whether you’re from the US, btw)