Uninsured count jumps to 47 million

The increase means that more patients will delay treatment and that doctors will likely see more uncompensated care.

By Dave Hansen, AMNews staff. Sept. 17, 2007.

Washington -- A persistent slide in work-based health insurance is largely to blame for a 2.2 million rise in the number of uninsured in America, according to policy experts.

U.S. Census Bureau figures released Aug. 28 show that the number of people without coverage increased to 47 million from 2005 to 2006.

The jump is "appalling," said American Medical Association President-elect Nancy H. Nielsen, MD, PhD. "I was so disappointed, because we have had years of people talking about this problem."

The percentage of people covered by insurance they get through work fell from 60.2% in 2005 to 59.7% in 2006, the Census Bureau figures show. The bureau's data approximate the number of people who are uninsured at a point in time during the year, as opposed to lacking insurance for the entire year.

"Overall, the picture is one of continual erosion of employer coverage that is now starting to squeeze the middle class," said Karen Davis, PhD, president of the Commonwealth Fund, a foundation dedicated to improving health care. "It's very troubling to see this dramatic increase."

The private insurance percentages fell because workers cannot afford premiums, said Paul Fronstin, PhD, director of health research and education at the Employee Benefit Research Institute. The Kaiser Family Foundation's annual employer survey last year found that the percentage of businesses offering coverage did not change, he said. But premiums rose 7.7%, while worker earnings increased only 4%.