Healthcare
The Uninsured
Nearly 290,000 Utahns have no health insurance. Having no health insurance makes a person much less likely
to receive routine medical care and to have a personal
doctor or health care provider. The uninsured are more
likely to be in poor health, and because they are less
likely to receive routine screenings, they are at risk for
certain kinds of cancers. As one noted researcher put
it, "Our neighbors, friends and relatives without
health insurance live sicker and will likely die younger
than those who have
insurance."
Rising healthcare costs are particularly burdensome to the
uninsured. Patients without health insurance typically
pay higher costs for medical services than the negotiated
prices available to insurance providers. They are more
likely to seek primary care at expensive emergency rooms or
urgent care clinics, and they are more likely to have to
choose between prescription drugs and food. Medical
bills are a leading cause of bankruptcy in Utah.
The vast majority of Utah's uninsured are employed people and their
dependents. Many of them work for small businesses
that can't afford the high cost of providing medical
coverage for employees. The percentage of employers
not offering health coverage is growing. And, since individual plans
are expensive and difficult to find, more and more employees
are having to do without.
With a legislative health care reform task force meeting
this year, health care legislation will certainly come up in
the 2009 legislative session. As those proposals are
evaluated, it's imperative that the focus be on expanding
access to quality healthcare at a price Utahns can afford.
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