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A Closer Look: Out-of-Pocket Health Care Spending and the "Underinsured"
The new Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) DataHub, using health expenditure data from the 2010 and 2011 Current Population Survey, provides estimates of the percent of individuals nationally and at the state level who are in families that face a high health care cost burden (defined as “the share of individuals who are in families where out-of-pocket spending on health care, including premiums, accounted for more than 10 percent of annual income”). The DataHub reports that, nationally, an estimated 18.3 percent of individuals are in such families. Read More Cancer Costs Hit Young and Poor Hardest: Study, by Andrew Seaman
The study of Washington state residents who underwent colon cancer treatment found that compared with older people, patients under age 50 had more than 50-times greater chances of selling or refinancing their homes, having their income drop 20 percent or more, going into debt or having to borrow money from friends and family to meet expenses. Patients with household incomes below $30,000 were about eight times more likely to face those financial problems than those who were better off. Read More In a Slow Economy More Cancer Patients are in Financial Need, by Don Jewler
Results from a survey by the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) provide insight into the effects of a sluggish economy on the nation’s cancer care providers and cancer patients. Most cancer programs reported that their financial health is good or very good, and 46 percent of respondents plan to expand their infusion center to serve an increasing number of patients. Hiring freezes have dropped dramatically and so have delays in information technology purchases. Read More Archived: More Than a Quarter of Prescription Takers Cut Corners to Save Money, by Katherine Hobson Impact of Disparities on Access and Quality of Cancer Care, by John Geyman Recession Causing Cancer Patients to Quit Life-Extending Drugs, by Amanda Gardner 25 Million Americans Are "Underinsured", by Steven Reinberg Issues Facing America: Underinsured Patients, by Ryan M. Nunley, MD Addressing Underinsurance in National Health Reform, by Grace-Marie Turner Underinsured Americans: Cost to You, by Parija B. Kavilanz Specialty Medicines Led Rebound in U.S. Drug Approvals in 2008, by Justin Blum As Pills Treat Cancer, Insurance Lags Behind, By Andrew Pollack Adversaries Team Up on Health Care, by Chris Frates
Stressed Americans Postpone Healthcare, by Maggie Fox, Edited by Peter Cooney
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