2002年美国数百万人失去医疗保障
More than 15% of the population is uninsured.
http://www.100md.com
2003年10月29日
Washington -- New figures from the U.S. Census Bureau show that 2.4 million Americans were added to the rolls of the uninsured in 2002, but experts say it could have been much worse.
The number of people lacking health coverage rose to 43.6 million in 2002, or more than 15% of the population.
The bureau's report also showed that 242.2 million Americans had health insurance last year, up 1.5 million from 2001. Many Americans lost private coverage because of job loss and a surge in health care costs.
, 百拇医药
The rise in the number of uninsured could have been much worse, even double what it was, had not public programs picked up some of the slack, said Leighton Ku, senior fellow in health policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Enrollment in Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program rose by nearly 4 million last year.
The growth in public coverage meant that the change among children without health insurance was not statistically significant from 2001 to 2002 in the Census Bureau survey.
, http://www.100md.com
"Although Medicaid coverage was able to offset the erosion in employer- sponsored coverage for many families, especially for children, large gaps remain for many more families," said Diane Rowland, executive vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation. "However, we may also have seen the high point of Medicaid enrollment."
More than 15% of the population is uninsured.
Ku said trends suggest that the rise in the uninsured population is likely to continue this year. Many states are cutting Medicaid to plug budget shortfalls, potentially making it difficult for the programs to compensate for more losses in the private market.
, http://www.100md.com
Earlier this year, Congress approved an infusion of $10 billion to help the states with their budget problems. This move helped many states postpone eligibility and other Medicaid cuts. Similar measures to stabilize state revenues will be necessary if Medicaid is to continue to absorb the uninsured, said Rowland.
Supporters of the Cover the Uninsured initiative, of which the AMA is a major sponsor, are pushing lawmakers and the public to explore new solutions.
, http://www.100md.com
The jump in the number of uninsured Americans has gotten some attention on Capitol Hill. "Congress needs to show the same commitment to addressing this problem as it has to delivering a prescription drug benefit in Medicare," said Sen. Charles Grassley (R, Iowa), Senate Finance Committee chair. "There's no one-size-fits-all solution, so we have to look at a lot of different initiatives."
By Joel B. Finkelstein, AMNews staff. Oct. 13, 2003., http://www.100md.com
The number of people lacking health coverage rose to 43.6 million in 2002, or more than 15% of the population.
The bureau's report also showed that 242.2 million Americans had health insurance last year, up 1.5 million from 2001. Many Americans lost private coverage because of job loss and a surge in health care costs.
, 百拇医药
The rise in the number of uninsured could have been much worse, even double what it was, had not public programs picked up some of the slack, said Leighton Ku, senior fellow in health policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Enrollment in Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program rose by nearly 4 million last year.
The growth in public coverage meant that the change among children without health insurance was not statistically significant from 2001 to 2002 in the Census Bureau survey.
, http://www.100md.com
"Although Medicaid coverage was able to offset the erosion in employer- sponsored coverage for many families, especially for children, large gaps remain for many more families," said Diane Rowland, executive vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation. "However, we may also have seen the high point of Medicaid enrollment."
More than 15% of the population is uninsured.
Ku said trends suggest that the rise in the uninsured population is likely to continue this year. Many states are cutting Medicaid to plug budget shortfalls, potentially making it difficult for the programs to compensate for more losses in the private market.
, http://www.100md.com
Earlier this year, Congress approved an infusion of $10 billion to help the states with their budget problems. This move helped many states postpone eligibility and other Medicaid cuts. Similar measures to stabilize state revenues will be necessary if Medicaid is to continue to absorb the uninsured, said Rowland.
Supporters of the Cover the Uninsured initiative, of which the AMA is a major sponsor, are pushing lawmakers and the public to explore new solutions.
, http://www.100md.com
The jump in the number of uninsured Americans has gotten some attention on Capitol Hill. "Congress needs to show the same commitment to addressing this problem as it has to delivering a prescription drug benefit in Medicare," said Sen. Charles Grassley (R, Iowa), Senate Finance Committee chair. "There's no one-size-fits-all solution, so we have to look at a lot of different initiatives."
By Joel B. Finkelstein, AMNews staff. Oct. 13, 2003., http://www.100md.com