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presentation on universal health care by Conference of Churches
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Universal Health Care Access
A Right Not a Privilege
The Problem
Connecticut’s Health Care System:A Need For Bold Change
The Health Care Crisis
The rate of growth is not sustainable Families can’t afford increasing
costs Small businesses can’t afford the
premiums and the unpredictable cost increases
Health-related bankruptcies are skyrocketing Doctors and hospitals can’t absorb any more
uncompensated care The uninsured and underinsured are getting too
little care too late at too high a price
Premium costs are out of reach for many From 2000 to 2004, CT workers’ health
premiums grew by 56% while wages grew by only 14%
CT is the 6th most expensive state in the US for family health insurance premiums and 12th most expensive for individual coverage
Source: AHRQ, Health Affairs, Lewin Group, OHCA
Who isn’t covered?
One in nine CT residents is uninsured
365,000 CT residents are uninsured – more than the combined populations of New Haven PLUS Hartford PLUS Waterbury PLUS Middletown
The number is rising – 50,000 more residents were uninsured in 2004 than in 2003 - more than the population of nine out of ten CT municipalities – and things are likely to get worse rather than better
Sources: US Census, CT DOL, Families USA
CT’s Uninsured: Most are working people Most want coverage but can’t afford it Many work for small businesses Many are young, age 19 to 29, often too
old to remain on parents’ plan or HUSKY Many are near-elderly, age 55 to 64,
hoping to stay well until they become eligible for Medicare
Source: OHCA
Why are people uninsured?
Most can’t afford insurance Employers don’t provide it High cost of individual or family
premiums, Many can’t afford their share of the
costs for their employer-sponsored plan Many have a pre-existing condition
making health care coverage hard to obtain
Source: Kaiser Commission
Even if you’re covered, you can be under-insured
If you are insured, you still have co-pays, deductibles, and co-insurance. Sometimes the services you need are not covered
Half of all bankruptcies are due to high medical bills – and most of those are among people who HAVE health insurance
Any of us can lose our insurance
Many people are just a pink slip away from being uninsured
People lose insurance when they Lose a job Graduate from school, Get married or divorced
Suffer a major illness or accident
Source: OHCA, IOM
High administrative costs add to health care spending Government programs spend less on
administration than private programs
Administative costs
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
Medicare Medicaid HUSKY CT privatelarge group
CT smallgroups
CT individualpolicies
Sources: CMS, DOI, DSS
Our health care spending is not sustainable for our economy
In 1980, national health expenditures were 8.8% of Gross Domestic Product. By 2014 they are predicted to be 18.7%
Sources: Mapping Health and Insurance Coverage in CT, CMS
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
US health care total spending projections
The U.S. spends more on health care than any other country
Total health spending, per capita, 2002
$0
$2,000
$4,000
$6,000
US
Canad
a
Germ
any
Franc
e
Austra
lia
Irelan
d
OECD med
ian UKJa
pan
Source: Health Affairs
Health care consumes 16 cents of every dollar in the US economy
Our health outcomes are worse than countries that spend much lessLife Expectancy at Birth, 2003
70
75
80
85
year
s Females
Males
Source: World Health Organization
Taxpayers already pay for a large share of CT’s health care
Private, 40%
Medicare, 23%
Medicaid, 10%
Uncompensated care, 0.40%
Out of pocket, 20%
All other, 7%
Private
Medicare
Medicaid
Uncompensated care
Out of pocket
All other
Source: Mapping Health Spending and Insurance Coverage in CT
Sources of CT health Care Spending, CT 2005
Medical debt can destroy lives…
Out of pocket costs are up 62% since 1993
Four out of ten adults under age 65 have problems related to medical bills or debt
Half of American bankruptcies are triggered by medical bills
Sources: Kaiser Family Fndn, Health Affairs, Access Project
Medical debt kills… Adults with medical debt are
three times more likely to skip a recommended test or treatment and twice as likely not to fill a prescription due to cost
People with medical debt are just as likely to have employer coverage, but they have fewer benefits
Sources: Kaiser Family Fndn, Health Affairs, Access Project
What does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God?
Micah 6:8
Where Do We Start?
Why not cover everyone?
Address this moral issue by providing all residents access to quality care
Encourages the use of preventative care and early diagnostic services that enhance lives and save money
Free up emergency rooms for real emergencies
Health Care for Everyone
Stabilize the system that is now increasingly unpredictable
Reduce health care costs by increasing the buying power of consumers and by reducing illness
We can afford to cover everyone Economists estimate that covering everyone
would SAVE the United States between $320.5 billion and $1.1 trillion over a decade
Companies that operate in Canada, with universal health care, save an estimated $4 per hour per worker on health insurance costs compared to the US
The Institute of Medicine estimates that the US economy loses $65 to $130 billion each year in productivity due to workers’ lack of coverage
Sources: Nat. Coalition on Health Care, Washington Post, IOM
Other states are doing it
Massachusetts Maine Illinois
Sources: States of ME, IL, MA
Health Care Reform means… Secure access to health insurance for those
who lack it Improvement in cost-effectiveness and quality
health care Health care that is affordable for everyone!
Why is Universal Healthcare important?
We all pay for inefficiency and those uninsured now.
Thousands of residents are just a paycheck away from being uninsured.
The Institute of Medicine defines Universal Health Care as a system that: Includes everyone;
Is continuous and portable from job to job, employment to unemployment;
Is affordable to individuals, especially those with limited income;
Is affordable and sustainable to society; and Enhances health and well-being.
Working together. Changing lives.
We each can make a difference. Surveys show that policymakers trust their
constituents -- people from the real world -- far more than lobbyists, advocates, even “experts”
Go to the website www.healthcare4every1.org and sign up to be a part of the campaign for universal health care
Get the tools at the health advocacy toolbox www.cthealthpolicy.org/toolbox
What You Can Do?
Stay Informed; Host a Community Forum on Universal Health
Care to educate your congregation and region [sign up today!];
Encourage people of faith and goodwill to contact state legislators and inspire them to provide health care for everyone;
Meet with public officials yourself and urge them to work on health care reform;
“You must be the Change you wish to see in the World.”
--Mahatma Gandhi
Together We Can Make a Difference!!! Together we can make affordable, quality
health care accessible to all residents.
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