Number of Underinsured Adults in U.S. Increases 60%

What happens when you let John McCain and the Republicans rule mostly unchecked for years? For the Andrew Undershafts* of the world it's been a big party, but for the rest of us? It ain't pretty folks-- here is the latest:

According to a study published online in the journal Health Affairs today the number of adults nationwide who have health insurance but face financial risk due to high out-of-pocket expenses - known as the underinsured - increased 60 percent between 2003 and 2007 to more than 25 million. The report also found:

-- About 68 percent of the uninsured and 53 percent of the underinsured said they went without needed care because of cost, compared with 31 percent of those with adequate insurance.

-- Middle- and higher-income families, those with annual incomes of at least $40,000, experienced the sharpest increase among the uninsured, nearly tripling from 4 percent in 2003 to 11 percent in 2007, according to the study by the Commonwealth Fund.

-- Forty-five percent of the underinsured reported difficulties paying their medical bills, being contacted by collection agencies for unpaid bills or changing their way of life to cover their health expenses.

Can anyone making less than $100,000 a year really want four more years of this? It shouldn't be this way. We can do better.

To read the report, go to commonwealthfund.org 

Side note: John McCain gave a speech on the economy today in response to Obama; in it he didn't even mention his gas tax repeal-- perhaps the realization that it is a bad idea has finally sunk in? 

* Andrew Undershaft is a literary character from G. B. Shaw's Major Barbara; he is a wealthy weapons manufacturer, and an unrepetant one at that.