According to a study published in the Journal of Public Health, lack of health insurance was a factor in as many as 45,000 deaths in 2005. The uninsured were 40 percent more likely to die than those with private insurance, and youth and oppressed communities were more likely to be uninsured.
The survey examined factors such as insurance coverage, income, education and health status. Uninsured people are denied preventive treatment for common illnesses. Deaths attributable to lack of insurance now exceed deaths from conditions such as kidney disease.
The annual figures translate to one death every 12 minutes because of lack of health coverage. The study authors explained, “Despite widespread acknowledgment that enacting universal coverage would be life saving, doing so remains politically thorny.”(ABC News, Sept. 18)
The “thorns” are the multi-billion dollar health insurance and pharmaceutical industries. Over 46 million people in the United States lack health care coverage,(MSNBC, Sept. 10) while pharmaceutical and insurance companies continue to make a killing—literally.
