Massachusetts shows the way
August 31, 2008
The Massachusetts health program seems to be showing its success. The ranks of the uninsured have dropped and now Massachusetts has the lowest rate of uninsured people in the nation. People going to emergency rooms for care has fallen in the state as well. Due to the popularity of the program, the state has had to look out for newer revenue sources. The way the program has shown success over the first 21 months makes it seem like this plan could become a universal health care model.
No Health Insurance For 47.5 million in U.S.
August 29, 2008
According to the US Census Bureau, 45.7 mn Americans had no health insurance in 2007. The good news is that this figure is lower than the similar figure for 2006. In 2006 there were 1.3 mn more uninsured American.
According to the announcement 8.1 mn US kids did not have any kind of health insurance in 2007. However this was 600,000 less than the number of uninsured children in the previous year. So that is a bit of good news here.
People Left Without Insurance Due To Errors In Boston
August 24, 2008
The Boston state’s universal healthcare system has ended healthcare for tens of thousands of people since the start of the year. This is according to state enrollment figures. Sometimes patients were terminated because of their own mistakes. In other cases the errors were due to the state.
These figures do not reveal how many people reenrolled later. The number of wrongfully terminated people has not been tracked either. According to community advocates and lawyers, a steady stream of enrollees’ insurance was cancelled unilaterally with no fault from them.
Health Insurance: Rising Costs and The People
August 23, 2008
Rising health care and insurance costs are a concern for all Americans. Universal coverage is an option being explored by many states. The presidential candidates are adding their own ideas to the pool. In Oregon a bill passed in the 2007 session pointed towards a universal health care system. A number of principles for a new health care system were set out.
Among the principles was one that said that financing of health care must be equitable broadly based and affordable. A finance committee was set up with people with financial expertise. Recommendations were made to the board in June. Funding by payroll tax was suggested.
The State Of Childrens Health Insurance
August 16, 2008
According to a report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, uninsured kids are much more likely to have gone to a doctor than uninsured kids. Of the insured kids about 60 percent are insured by private programs and the rest under public programs like Medicaid and SCHIP. According to the report 41 percent of kids without health insurance missed care and only 10 percent of those children insured under public health programs missed health care.
Health Care Being Put Aside To Save Money
August 15, 2008
Americans seem to be cutting down on health care costs to save money. Another symptom of a weakening economy. Whether the weakening economy helps or harms health is a matter of debate. When money is tight people give up cigarettes and slow down on drinks. This keeps them healthier.
Medical Needs Weigh Heavy on US Healthcare system
August 9, 2008
The health care crisis in the US is worsening by the day. US citizens are making unprecedented demands on the healthcare system with over a billion visits a year to clinics, doctor’s offices and emergency rooms. Statistics released by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention show the 1.1 billion visits for medical care in 2006, measured up to an average of four visits per person every year.
The nation’s population has grown by eleven percent from 1996 to 2006, while the hospital and doctor visits have risen by twenty-six percent. Even more surprising is the rapid rise in Emergency room visits. ERs all across the nation have recorded an average of 227 patients per minute. The increase in the country’s aged population is being cited as the reason for the increase in hospital and doctor visits by the CDC. As compared to younger people, the old need more care and they are utilizing health care more now than ever in the past.
US: Millions of Adult Chronic Patients still Uninsured.
August 7, 2008
In the August 15th edition of the Annals of Internal Medicine, a study has been published that reveals that one out of every three uninsured US citizens has a chronic ailment and yet is not receiving the requisite medical care. Even though the study was not entirely focused on the health consequences of absence of insurance and inaccessibility to health care, one can clearly imagine the impact these will have, as the authors of the report were keen to point out.
11.4 million Americans suffer from minimum one chronic illness and do not even have insurance to pay for the needed medical care. This was said by Dr. Steffie Woolhandler, a doctor, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard University and also the co-author of this study. What needs to be understood is that these illnesses can very much be controlled. With modern day therapies, the patients can be “kept out of trouble” as Dr. Andrew P. Wilper said.
USA Today Reports!
August 1, 2008
In a recent report by USA Today, 18 million U.S. residents claim to have individual health insurance. While this is great for a few, it is fraught with complexities for many others. The report said that the two presidential candidates, Sen. Barrack Obama and Sen. John McCain are aiming to improve conditions for those people who purchase their own coverage.
According to the USA Today report, if the problem in the individual market is fixed then it could definitely go a long way in increasing the span of health coverage in U.S.A. Experts working on the report cited three key issues that concern the individual health insurance market: the coverage costs, canceling of health coverage by health insurers in many states and the lack of coverage for applicants with pre-existing medical conditions.
