WASHINGTON, May 10, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- The overwhelming majority of U.S.
women are either uninsured or underinsured for health costs and have medical
debt problems, a report says.
The report by the Commonwealth Fund says seven of 10 working-age women -- or an
estimated 64 million women -- have no medical insurance coverage or inadequate
coverage.
The study, "Women at Risk: Why Many Women Are Forgoing Needed Health Care," also
says 52 percent of working-age women say they have problems accessing needed
healthcare because of cost, compared to 39 percent of men who said so.
"More families are making difficult choices between needed healthcare, making
payments on mortgages or credit card debt, and purchasing basic necessities,"
said Commonwealth Fund President Karen Davis. "This study underscores the need
for affordable universal health coverage and protection against catastrophic
financial losses not only for women -- who are more likely to be at risk for
high premiums and medical bills -- but for all Americans."
The study was based on data from the Commonwealth Fund's 2007 Biennial Health
Insurance Survey, which was conducted from June 6, 2007, through Oct. 24, 2007.
Commonwealth said the report is likely to understate the scope of the problem
since unemployment and loss of insurance coverage have increased during the U.S.
recession.
"Although similar proportions of women and men were uninsured for at least part
of the year or were underinsured, we found that women were more affected by
exposure to healthcare costs," said Michelle Doty, director of survey research
at the Commonwealth Fund.
The Biennial Health Insurance Survey of 3,501 adults has a margin of error of
plus or minus 2 percentage points.
URL: www.upi.com
Copyright 2009 by United Press International