More on the health care crisis in the U.S.

by: desmoinesdem

Tue Mar 25, 2008 at 20:55:55 PM CDT

The press release that accompanied the report is after the jump. Here is a particularly depressing excerpt:

* Families USA estimates that nearly three working-age Iowans die each week due to lack of health insurance (approximately 140 people in 2006).

* Between 2000 and 2006, the estimated number of adults between the ages of 25 and 64 in Iowa who died because they did not have health insurance was more than 800.

* Across the United States, in 2006, twice as many people in that same age category died from a lack of health insurance as died from homicide.

Of course, the media coverage devoted to homicides far exceeds the coverage devoted to people who die because they lack health insurance.

Here's hoping that when Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have their next debate, journalists allow them to talk about health care and other issues.

New Report Shows How Many People Are Likely to Die in Iowa Due to Lack of Health Coverage

Report Reveals Why Insurance Matters as a Life-and-Death Issue

Washington, D.C. - Nearly three people die each week in Iowa because they don't have health insurance, says a new report by Families USA, the national organization for health care consumers.

The Families USA report, the first-ever state-specific report of this type, is based on a groundbreaking national study by the Institute of Medicine, which in 2002 forged the direct link between a lack of health coverage and deaths from health-related causes.

"Our report highlights how our inadequate system of health coverage condemns a great number of Iowans to an early death simply because they don't have the same access to health care as their insured neighbors," Ron Pollack, Executive Director of Families USA, said today. "The conclusions are sadly clear-a lack of health coverage is a matter of life and death for many Iowans.

"Health insurance really matters in how people make their health care decisions," Pollack said. "We know that people without insurance often forgo checkups, screenings, and other preventive care."

As a result, he said, uninsured adults are more likely to be diagnosed with a disease, such as cancer, in an advanced stage, which greatly reduces their chance of survival. The Institute of Medicine found that uninsured adults are 25 percent more likely to die prematurely than adults with private health insurance.

Another recent academic study found that uninsured adults between the ages of 55 and 64 are even more likely to die prematurely. For this group, a lack of health insurance is the third leading cause of death, following heart disease and cancer.

The Families USA report for Iowa makes three specific points about uninsured adults:

* Families USA estimates that nearly three working-age Iowans die each week due to lack of health insurance (approximately 140 people in 2006).

* Between 2000 and 2006, the estimated number of adults between the ages of 25 and 64 in Iowa who died because they did not have health insurance was more than 800.

* Across the United States, in 2006, twice as many people in that same age category died from a lack of health insurance as died from homicide.

"Congress needs to work together on legislation that would help all uninsured Americans gain affordable access to health insurance and strengthen the ability of employers, big and small, to offer coverage," U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA), ranking member of the Committee on Finance, said today.

"Legislative opportunities include changes to the tax laws to level the playing field for workers who don't have health insurance and to make it affordable for small business, where the problem of the uninsured is the most acute, to offer health insurance," Grassley said. "We need to encourage choice and competition to hold down costs and empower consumers to control their own health care decisions."

"In these economic shaky times, I know that working families in Iowa are finding it very difficult to pay for health insurance," U.S. Rep. Leonard L. Boswell (D-IA) said today. "It is my hope that the next President and Congress will be able to work together and figure out a way to provide good, affordable health care coverage to all Americans. Studies by Families USA, like this one, are very important in shaping health care policy and bringing these figures to light."    

"These figures present a stark picture of the challenges uninsured Iowans face," U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley (D-IA) said today. "This study is even more concerning when you consider the number of children lacking health insurance. As health insurance premiums rise, more working families are finding it harder to afford quality health care.

"One thing is clear," Braley said, "It's time for Congress and the White House to tackle the health care crisis that is facing our state and our country."

In its 2002 report, the Institute of Medicine estimated that 18,000 adults nationwide died in 2000 because they did not have health insurance. That estimate was later updated by the Urban Institute, which reported that at least 22,000 adults died in 2006 due to a lack of health insurance.