The uninsured: A campaign for action

Striking new census figures on the uninsured debut at the same time as an AMA campaign to work for a solution.

Editorial. Sept. 24, 2007.

Late last month, the Census Bureau released a new round of numbers detailing a striking jump in the tally of the nation's uninsured.

These figures tell a stark story and the message behind them is clear: Now, more than ever, is the time to focus on this problem and make solving it a national imperative.

And what a problem it is. The Census Bureau, in its report, "Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2006," found the number of people without health insurance at some point in the year rose again, this time from 44.8 million (15.3%) in 2005 to 47 million (15.8%) in 2006. A key factor in the increase is the number who no longer have employer-provided or privately purchased health insurance. The percentage who received health benefits through an employer declined to 59.7% in 2006 from 60.2% in 2005. Moreover, the number of full-time workers without health coverage rose from 20.8 million to 22 million during that period, presumably because employers, workers or both found it cost prohibitive.

The nation also lost ground in what had been one of its few bright spots. For five years, the number of uninsured children in the U.S. decreased, mainly because of expansions in Medicaid and the success of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. For the second year in a row, however, this positive trend did not hold, and the number of uninsured children increased from 8 million (10.9%) in 2005 to 8.7 million (11.7%) in 2006.

Physicians know firsthand why these circumstances are dire. They see the difficulties every day -- the children with asthma who wind up in emergency departments, the patients with complications from untreated diabetes and the many others with equally troubling problems exacerbated by a lack of coverage. It is that essential missing element that is keeping millions of patients from seeking a physician's care before a problem becomes a crisis. That's why organized medicine is taking on the challenge of giving physicians and patients a voice in the process.