It’s easy enough for people who have health insurance to shrug off the plight of those who don’t, but the problem affects everyone and it’s growing.
And Colorado is in the thick of it.
Forty-five million Americans, including 8 million children, go without health insurance, crossing their fingers that they will avoid a calamitous illness or accident. In Colorado, the number is estimated at about 750,000.
Who picks up the slack in our $2 trillion health economy? Insurance premiums rise to absorb the expenses of those who have no insurance and can’t afford to pay out of pocket. As if the financial impact weren’t bad enough, lack of insurance means more people die unnecessarily of preventable illnesses – about 18,000 a year, according to the federal Institute of Medicine.
This past week was marked as Cover the Uninsured Week, a public relations effort by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and a coalition of organizations ranging from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to AARP and the AFL-CIO. We hope their effort to call attention to the situation prompts state and federal lawmakers to focus on solutions.
Lack of health coverage is not limited to the unemployed – far from it. More than 20 million working adults lack coverage, according to 2003 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Colorado, the number is 336,212.
Such statistics contribute to efforts that are being made in Colorado to boost coverage. Voters last year approved an initiative led by Barbara O’Brien, president of the Colorado Children’s Campaign, to extend health coverage to more residents with revenue from higher tobacco taxes. Democrats have taken up the cause in the statehouse, championing a bill that makes it easier for small business to offer insurance and looking for ways to lower prescription drug costs.
In Congress, majority Republicans have their heads in the sand, making deep cuts in Medicaid, the federal program that insures poor, elderly and disabled Americans. Cuts could amount to $10 billion over the next five years.
Coloradans in need of Medicaid are worse off than people in other states because ours is one of the most restrictive programs in the country. For example, Colorado does not allow people to subtract their medical expenses from their income to qualify for Medicaid.
“It leaves big gaps of people who have too much money to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to cover medical expenses,” said Peter Komlos-Hobsky, supervising attorney for health and elder law at Colorado Legal Services. Colorado is also among the few states that have an “asset” test, meaning that if a household has $2,000 or more in assets – such as a car – the members can’t qualify for Medicaid. Thankfully, this is being phased out.) Adults have a harder time qualifying than children. Adults in a family of four must earn no more than 37 percent of the poverty level to qualify for Medicaid – meaning their income can’t exceed $7,160 a year. The new tobacco law will increase the percentage slightly.
The uninsured often put off doctor visits until an emergency hits. They end up in emergency rooms, where the cost of care is high. Then the vicious cycle continues, with hospitals raising prices and insurance companies passing on costs to insured consumers.
No wonder health policy needs to be a top priority for Congress and for state lawmakers.
