About Healthcare in America
Quality healthcare that once seemed reliable is quickly being priced out of reach for millions of hardworking, taxpaying Americans. The healthcare crisis affects us all regardless of age, race or employment.
Nearly 47million Americans are uninsured. That's nearly 16 percent of the population.
And that number doesn't even scratch the surface of the number of Americans who are underinsured in this country.
Healthcare Costs Are Skyrocketing
Healthcare cost increases are easily outpacing wages. These rising costs make it difficult for small businesses to provide basic coverage, and corporations are shifting the growing burden directly to their employees, leaving many Americans without affordable coverage.
- In 2006, insurance premiums increased 6.1 percent, but wages only went up 3.7 percent.
- Since 2001, premiums for family coverage have increased 78 percent, while wages have gone up 19 percent and inflation has gone up 17 percent.
- The average premium for family coverage in 2007 is $12,106. ("Survey of Employer Benefits 2007" by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research & Educational Trust.)
Nearly 47 Million Americans Have No Healthcare
- More than eight in 10 of the non-elderly uninsured (82.8 percent) live in families where the head of the family works. (Employee Benefit Research Institute, 2007)
- Twenty percent of the uninsured - nearly 9 million – are children (Institute of Medicine, 2002, Health Insurance is a Family Matter)
- In 2000, 69 percent of businesses offered health benefits to at least some of their workers. In 2007, that number dropped to 60 percent. ("Survey of Employer Benefits 2007" by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research & Educational Trust.)
Small Businesses and the Self-Employed Can't Afford Healthcare
More than 40 million Americans work for a small business - but since small businesses and the self-employed aren't able to purchase insurance as cheaply as large corporations, rising health costs are making it increasingly difficult for them to afford basic health coverage for their employees and their families.
- In 2007, health insurance premiums for small businesses increased more than twice as fast as inflation. (NFIB)
- Of the estimated 47 million Americans without healthcare, more than 27 million are small business owners, employees or their dependents. (Employee Benefit Research Institute)
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