- CHICAGO (Reuters) -- One
in seven families in the U.S. -- most of which are already covered by health
insurance -- are struggling with debt from medical expenses, a study found
on Wednesday.
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- That amounts to 20 million families reporting difficulties
paying for basic needs like food and shelter because of problems with debt
from medical care, the nonprofit Center for Studying Health System Change
found in its poll of 25,400 families.
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- "It was kind of a surprise that it was that high,"
said Peter Cunningham, a senior health researcher at the think tank and
study author.
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- One striking finding in the study is that two-thirds
of those facing medical bills they cannot pay already have health insurance.
Unpaid medical bills comprise roughly half of all personal bankruptcies,
according to studies.
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- Medical costs are soaring at twice the rate of general
inflation and faster than incomes. The primary cost drivers for health
care premiums -- prescription drugs, hospital care and doctors -- rose
7.4 percent in 2003.
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- As employers grapple with these costs, they are shifting
more out-of-pocket costs onto consumers, studies say. Fees charged to patients
for doctors' visits and prescription drugs, which are not fully paid for
by insurance, have risen significantly for several years.
-
- That is likely a factor driving the trend, and with health
care costs rising so steeply, it is likely to burden more families in the
future, Cunningham said.
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- http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=5554901
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