Forty-seven million Americans went without health insurance in 2006, an increase of 2.2 million people from the year before, according to a
report issued by the U.S. Census Bureau Tuesday (Aug. 28). It marks the sixthconsecutive year the ranks of the uninsured have grown.
For the second year in a row, the percentage of children without medical coverage also increased. The Census Bureau estimates 8.7 million kids – or 11.7 percent – had no insurance, an increase of 700,000 over the year before.
Advocacy groups immediately seized on the numbers to back their call for an expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), a joint state-federal venture for families who make too much to qualify for Medicaid.
“The huge number of uninsured Americans exceeds the cumulative population of 24 states plus the District of Columbia. This epidemic of uninsurance has reached crisis proportions, and Americans want to see the problem solved,” said Kathleen Stoll, health policy director of
Families USA, a group pushing for a large expansion of SCHIP.
In a statement released by
American Medical Association, Dr. Joseph Heyman, a board member, said, “It is unconscionable that the number of uninsured children has substantially increased over the past year. Children are our future, and for kids to get a good start in life, they need access to regular visits to the doctor.”
But Greg D'Angelo, a health researcher at
The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, said the Census count is “very misleading” because it overstates the number of chronically uninsured, low-income Americans. The figure includes illegal immigrants, people already eligible for government programs, middle-class Americans who can afford but don’t buy insurance and workers who have temporarily lost coverage between jobs, he noted.
Both chambers of Congress approved plans earlier this month to dramatically reshape SCHIP by allowing millions more kids to join. But President Bush threatened to veto both proposals, calling them the first step on the road to socialized medicine.
House and Senate negotiators will try to hammer out their differences when Congress reconvenes next month. The program is set to expire Sept. 30.
The growing numbers of uninsured – especially the 1.5 million additional adults – will likely impose even more financial pressure on public hospitals, said John Holahan, director of the health policy center at the
Urban Institute, a Washington, D.C. think tank. Adults put more of a strain on hospitals, he noted, because they’re more expensive to treat.
Holahan said this increase occurred when some workers lost insurance coverage no longer provided by their employers, while the numbers of those served by public programs – such as Medicaid, Medicare and SCHIP – did not grow substantially.
The high cost of insurance for small companies and demographic shifts are both contributing to the steady slide in employer-based coverage. As Americans move to the West and South, they enter jobs that are less likely to offer insurance than those in the traditional manufacturing states in the Northeast and Midwest, he said.
With 24 percent of its population without coverage, Texas hadthe highest uninsured rate in the country, according to the report. The states with the lowest uninsured rates – all with close to 9 percent – are Minnesota, Hawaii, Iowa, Wisconsin and Maine.
D’Angelo, from the Heritage Foundation, agreed that employer-based coverage is eroding. That’s why, instead of expanding public programs, the government should encourage people with tax breaks to buy health insurance on their own, not through their employers, he said.
The insurance coverage statistics are part of a larger
snapshot of Americans’ economic situation released by the Census Bureau Aug. 28. The new data, based on annual surveys the Census Bureau conducts between its once-a-decade headcount, include state-by-state and, in some cases, county-by-county information on wages, poverty and demographics.
The new data also show, for instance, that percentage of Americans living in poverty (now 12.3 percent) dipped for the first time this decade, and the median household income inched up for the second straight year, reaching $48,200.
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By jack smith on Aug 29, 2007 4:46:17 AM
I have given it some thought and it seems that the only way to make congress move quickly on tax supported national health care for all is to demand aggressive endorsement and passage of John Conyers Bill HR 676. Medicare for all. All of you need to get on the phones , the email, and every other way possible. Get your friends, and family to help also. This is not a Democratic, or Republican issue. Its an American issue that effects everyone. Demand, and harass your representatives. Federal, State, and local. Demand unequivocal endorsement, and support of HR 676 Medicare for all. And if they drag their feet, or fail to quickly support this bill. Tell them you will do every thing in your power to see they don't get reelected if they don't. No excuses about we cant afford it. Many knowledgeable reputable experts have clearly shown numerous ways we can easily afford it. We already spend more on health care than any other country in the world. We cant afford not to have National Health Care for all. Look at www.sickocure.org
American Citizens are ask to step forward for the American people, and National health care for all. And target, and run against every politician that does not sign on to aggressive endorsement, and passage of John Conyers Bill HR 676. On a platform of National health care for all, Now! Each representative will be given a DEADline by which to respond in writing. Those that do not respond. Or that do not endorse immediate passage of this bill with full veto override if needed will be targeted for removal.
This can be done people. This is your duty. Hopefully you wont have to run, or serve. But you must be willing to do so. If you have to. It's time for the real American patriots to step forward. America, and your fellow citizens need you. The old people. The young people. The children. The babies all need you. You must start now. You must be aggressive, and relentless. You must not tire. You must take good care of your-selves so you can fight tough. Millions of life's are at steak. The time is now. You must not fail people. Some of you who have been wiped out by illness, and medical bills. You can do this. If you get elected to the house, or senate you'll have good health care coverage. BY GOD!!!! Actors, artist, every day people. Mother's, Fathers. Young people. You can do this.
Don't be distracted. There are paid teams out their that will try to distract you from this. Don't let them. Don't let world events, or new tragedy's at home distract you. Health Care is the #1 concern of the American people. Flood the media over the weeks and months till passage of National Health care. Make sure every discussion, and argument is about National health care. You can do this America. YOU CAN DO IT!!!!
And be strategic. If you have to run and another candidate looks like he or she will have a better chance of a win than you. And if they support non-profit, tax supported, single payer, National Health Insurance. Then drop out at the right time. And throw your whole hearted support to them. On the other hand. If you had to run because the politician in power failed to support passage of HR 676. Then do every thing in your power to win, and to see that they don't get reelected. Even if several of you have to run to take him out. Remember this is not a democratic, or republican issue. It's an American issue. We don't really wont their job. We just want good National Health care for all Americans. Be tough. Be brutal if need be.
To our friends around the world. We welcome your help, and advise. Don't be offended by the people that lash out at you. Or tell you to mind your own business. They don't really speak for most Americans. We, America is a part of all of you. We need your help, and advice. And we appreciate any input you have to help us solve our health care crises.
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