How Important Is Health Insurance?

Health insurance is critical, because it enables people to get timely medical care. There are some people who believe that just having access to emergency care qualifies as well-rounded medical care, but that’s not the case.

You might have a good safety net, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that all the barriers to good healthcare get removed. According to the Institute of Medicine (IOM), coverage matters. This is because lack of coverage leads to an additional 18,000 deaths per year among those who aren’t insured. 

In fact, those who are uninsured receive less medical aid and timely care. They only get half as much care as those who are privately insured..

Uninsured adults get fewer preventive and screening services and on a less timely basis. Several times, there are challenges seen for a range of illnesses, including screening for breast cancer or even lifestyle diseases such as blood pressure or cholesterol.

Those who are uninsured have a range of health outcomes that are worse than those who are insured. It is said that uninsured people get sick easily and are more susceptible to dying prematurely than their counterparts, because of lack of screening due to high costs of healthcare.

On the other hand, having health coverage is associated with better health-related outcomes. 

There’s evidence to prove this – death risk appears to be 25 percent or higher for people with certain chronic conditions, which has led to IOM’s alarming statistics of an additional 18,000 deaths per year amongst those who are uninsured.

And if that was not all – lack of insurance also proves to be a fiscal burden for the person involved and their families. They do not benefit from the discounted medical prices that are often negotiated by private or even public health plans. 

Even until recently, those who had no coverage had to incur full hospital charges.

There are some who qualify under charity care, due to low income, but there are also some who get dunned for not paying their bills. That’s why there are more cases of medical bill issues amongst uninsured people, and if you are not aware, medical bills are responsible for a sixth or more of bankruptcies, according to various surveys.