Progress Report: HEALTH CARE: Uninsured Problems Run Deep

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by David Sirota, Christy Harvey, Judd Legum and Jonathan Baskin

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HEALTH CARE

Uninsured Problems Run Deep

 

A new study from Families USA finds that nearly 82 million people were uninsured

at some point during the last two years. According to USA Today, " The

7-million-person increase over 2001-02 suggests the problem runs deep into the

middle class and could have broad political impact this fall. "

 

Where does the problem run deepest? " Texas, President Bush's home, had the

highest rate of uninsured: 43.4% of its non-elderly population. " On Saturday, at

least 142 events in 44 states will call for quality, affordable health care for

all. You can find more information at Bridging the Gap for Health Care.

 

CONSERVATIVES TRY TO HIDE FROM THE PROBLEM: Conservatives have tried to minimize

the problem – but not by covering the uninsured. Despite findings from the

Institute of Medicine that " Lack of health insurance causes roughly 18,000

unnecessary deaths every year in the United States, " Health and Human Services

Secretary Tommy Thompson has opined, " Even if you don't have health insurance,

you are still taken care of in America. That certainly could be defined as

universal coverage. " And on the same day last year that the New York Times

reported " New Study Finds 60 Million Uninsured During a Year, " the House Ways

and Means Committee, chaired by Rep. Bill Thomas (R-CA), declared, " Study Finds

Number of Uninsured Grossly Overstated; Uninsured Population Could Be Nearly

Half of What Previously Believed. " Meanwhile, new rules for Florida's KidCare

program could lead as many as 167,500 children to lose coverage under the

program as of July 1. Florida Governor Jeb Bush had praised the new

rules in March, saying they would increase the number of children served by

almost 100,000.

 

CONSERVATIVES TRY TO REDEFINE THE PROBLEM: The administration touts high

deductible Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) as remedy for America's health

insurance woes. But this year, a House conservative is aiming to classify people

with HSAs " uninsured " so that insurance companies can profit by stiffing

hospitals. Rep. Joel Hefley (R-CO), has introduced a bill that would do nothing

but increase the profits of HSA companies by capping how much money they pay

hospitals for their patients.

 

CONSERVATIVES TURN PROBLEMS INTO PROFITS: Hefley's bill is the answer to the HSA

industry's prayers. According to a profile in the 6/7/04 BusinessWeek,

conservative millionaire and HSA pioneer J. Patrick Rooney has been on a

" crusade " to replace traditional insurance with tax-free HSAs for more than a

decade. " I'm doing the right thing, and I think the Lord will be pleased about

it, " Rooney says. But according to hospitals, Rooney's new HSA company, Medical

Savings Insurance Company, has amassed millions of dollars worth of unpaid

hospital bills. He has invented an " unorthodox " way to settle this debt.

BusinessWeek details how Rooney is backing a nonprofit group called Consejo de

Latinos Unidos. Last year, Consejo waged a campaign against the nation's No. 2

hospital system, Tenet Healthcare Corp. -- the same hospital system that was

owed millions by Rooney's company. In deals with Consejo and Rooney that were

" contemporaneous and simultaneous, " according to a Tenet executive,

Tenet agreed to cut rates for uninsured patients and revamp its collection

practices -- and provide Rooney's Medical Savings with about $2 million in debt

forgiveness. Rooney " has never hidden the fact that he stood to profit from his

crusade. "

 

RISING HEALTH CARE COSTS PUT THE SQUEEZE ON RETIREES: A new study by American

Progress and the Economic Policy Institute reveals that health care costs are

eroding retirement security for older Americans. Sixty-six percent of companies

with more than 200 people offered retiree health insurance in 1988, but just 34

percent of such firms offered retiree health insurance in 2002. As a result many

workers are forced to " stay in the labor market longer, or to retire without

health insurance coverage. "

 

 

 

 

MEDICARE – FRAUD OK, LOWER PRICES NOT OK: The WSJ reports that Bush

administration officials have removed a link to a prescription drug distributor

from the Medicare website because it helps seniors buy cheaper FDA-approved

drugs from Canada. The firm, Sav-Rx Prescription Services, had been approved to

issue seniors' drug discount cards. The administration has opposed legislation

to allow seniors to purchase lower priced medicines from Canada, parroting the

rationale of its major drug industry campaign donors by claiming there are

safety concerns. In fact, the General Accounting Office this week reported " they

encountered few problems with medicines purchased from Canadian Web sites " and

" in some instances, Canadian online pharmacies had stricter standards than those

in the United States. " At the same time the action was taken against Sav-Rx, the

administration has refused to explain why it approved 20 companies that were

involved in serious fraud charges to participate in the drug

card program.

 

TAXES – HOUSE LARDS UP CORPORATE TAX BREAK: As Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) put it,

" Christmas has come on the 17th of June, " for business lobbyists, corporations

and special interests, in the form of a massive, pork-laden tax cut passed

yesterday in the House. Missing an opportunity to close tax shelters and reduce

" yawning deficits that pose a long-term risk to the economy, " the House voted

" to replace an export subsidy with a major tax cut for domestic manufacturers

and multinational corporations. " The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

estimates the House measure will increase the deficit by $34 billion through

2014, and that's before factoring in the pork. The Washington Post reports " the

push to repeal a $5 billion-a-year subsidy has allowed lobbyists and lawmakers

to dust off tax favors that have languished for years. " The bill includes

measures tailored to " help restaurant owners, makers of private jets, bank

directors, timberland owners, liquor distillers, Native American

whalers, commodity traders and shipping conglomerates, to name a few. " It also

includes a $9.6 billion bailout for tobacco farmers.

 

ENVIRO – OIL CHIEF FEARS FOR PLANET: With the Bush administration continuing to

downplay the effects of global warming and climate change, " The head of one of

the world's biggest oil companies has admitted that the threat of climate change

makes him 'really very worried for the planet.' " Ron Oxburgh, the chairman of

Shell Oil, " says we urgently need to capture emissions of the greenhouse gas

carbon dioxide, which scientists think contribute to global warming, and store

them underground - a technique called carbon sequestration. " Meanwhile, in a

briefing at the Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Dr. Chris

Field of the Carnegie Institution of Washington said " There is no question there

will be effects from climate change…We are already seeing impacts. The question

is at what level will we decide it is a problem. "

 

Don't Miss

DAILY TALKING POINTS: Bush Administration's Self-Delusions on Iraq-al Qaeda

'Contacts' Harmful for National Security

 

RETIREMENT: Health Insurance Squeeze is Here

 

JUSTICE: The Center for American Progress calls for the resignation or removal

of Attorney General John Ashcroft.

 

CONGRESS: Conservatives block subpoena on Justice Department memos dealing with

the role of torture in interrogations.

 

ENVIRO: Bush administration hails House vote allowing snowmobiles into

Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks.

 

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– USA Today, 6/16/04

 

Daily Outrage

A new study finds that nearly 82 million people were uninsured at some point

during the last two years, and a recent report by the Institute of Medicine

found a " lack of health insurance causes roughly 18,000 unnecessary deaths every

year in the United States. " Nonetheless, HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson has

opined, " Even if you don't have health insurance, you are still taken care of in

America. That certainly could be defined as universal coverage. "

 

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