New solutions sought to help uninsured

Advocates urge federal policy-makers from all sides to come to the table to discuss proposals before the problem gets worse.

By Joel B. Finkelstein, AMNews staff. May 24/31, 2004.

Washington -- The statistics paint a disturbing picture: More than 44 million Americans are without health insurance, and that number rises an average of 2 million each year. Four of five uninsured people are working adults, their spouses or children.

The personal consequences are often even more troubling: Individuals delaying physician visits until their disease has progressed beyond cure; uninsured patients living sicker and dying younger; and families being bankrupted by medical bills.

These statistics were released as part of the recent Cover the Uninsured Week, an effort aimed at drawing national attention to the country's health insurance access problems. For physicians, the numbers represent real patients.

"I could put a face to every one of those groups," said Regina Benjamin, MD, who runs a rural health clinic in Bayou la Batre, Ala.

The problem isn't just social for physicians -- it's also economic. The uninsured will receive an estimated $40.7 billion in uncompensated care in 2004. About 37% of that comes from physicians and clinics that serve low-income communities. Together these two sources provide the bulk of primary care services to the uninsured.

Physicians alone will provide slightly less than $8 billion in uncompensated care this year, according to statistics from the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured.

"We have never turned anyone away because they did not have insurance or the ability to pay, and we never will," said Dr. Benjamin, who is a former AMA trustee. "But it is getting harder and harder to maintain and keep our doors open."