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Fact Sheet:

Uninsured/Underinsured Americans Affect Us All:

• 47,000,000 Americans were uninsured in 2006, up 2,20,000 in just one year. Most of the "new" uninsured are from families who make more than $50,000 per year. (U.S Census Bureau Report, August, 2007)
• 80% of the uninsured live in working families (72% full-time, 8% part-time). (Wrong Direction - Families USA, 2007)
• 1 in 3 Oregonians less than 65 years old have no health insurance. (Families USA Report - 2004, U.S. Census Bureau)
• An additional 72,000,000 Americans (24% of the entire U.S. population) are underinsured and lack adequately protection against major illness or injury. (Consumer Reports, August, 2007)
• 22,000 Americans per year die due to lack of health coverage and access -- one Oregonian per day. This is more than die from HIV/AIDS or homicide in the United States. (Institute of Medicine, 2003; Urban Institute, 2007; Families-USA, 2008).

Skyrocketing health care costs hurt the economy/business community:

• Starbucks spends more on health care than coffee. (CEO Howard Schultz, 2005).
• It costs GM $1,800 more to make a car in the U.S. than Canada due to health care costs. (Wall Street Journal, 2/26/07)
• More than 5 business drop health insurance for employees every hour in the United States (Kaiser Family Foundation, Dept. of Labor (1999-2006 data) so that while 68% of businesses offered health benefits in 2000, only 59% did in 2007. (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2007)
• The Institute of Medicine estimates as much as $130,000,000,000 in lost economic productivity due to the effects of uninsurance on workers health. (Hidden Costs, Value Lost: Uninsurance in America, IOM - June 2003)
• Unpayable medical bills cause between 30-50% of all bankruptcies in the U.S. ("Medical Bills and Bankruptcy Filings", Aparna Mathur, American Enterprise Institute - 2006; "Illness and Injury as Contributors to Bankruptcy", Himmelstein et al., Health Affairs - Feb. 2, 2005)

Rising costs - Where is the money going?

• U.S. spends 200-300% more per person on health care than any other nation. (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; World Health Organization, 2005)
• Health care costs are rising 200-300% faster than general inflation or wages. (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)
• Average health insurance premiums have risen 80% between 2000 and 2007. (Kaiser Family Foundation/HRET Annual Employer Health Benefits Survey-2007)
• Average 2007 family health insurance premium: $12,106 per year. (Kaiser Family Foundation Survey - 2007) Total income for full-time worker at federal minimum wage: $11,700 per year.
• In 2005, family health insurance premiums included $1,128 per year to cover costs of uninsured in Oregon. In 2010, this cost will be an estimated $1,886 per year. (Paying a Premium - Families USA, June, 2005)
• $1,750 per American is spent every year on administrative overhead (paperwork and profits) -- 25% of all health care dollars. (Costs of Health Care Administration in the United States and Canada, Steffie Woolhandler, M.D., M.P.H., et al.; New England Journal of Medicine, Volume 349:768-775, August 21, 2003, Number 8; Oregonians For Health Security Report, February, 2005)

Value for our money - Do we get what we pay for?

• Americans have more out-of-pocket costs, less coordinated care, and more medical errors than residents of other Western nations. (Taking the Pulse of Health Care Systems: Experiences of Patients with Health Problems in Six Countries, Cathy Schoen, M.S., et al., Health Affairs, November 3, 2005)
• The U.S. has higher infant mortality, lower vaccination rates, and lower life expectancies than many Western nations. (World Health Organization - 2005)
• Well-coordinated primary care leads to lower overall health costs while preventing illness and death (Contribution of Primary Care to Health Systems and Health, Starfield, B., et al., Milbank Quarterly, 2005;83(3):457-502).