Sunday, September 2, 2007

Number of Uninsured Rises

Number of uninsured up despite an increase in household income and decline in poverty rate

August 28, 2007 - US Census Bureau News - Real median household income in the United States climbed between 2005 and 2006, reaching $48,200, according to a report released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. This is the second consecutive year that income has risen.

Meanwhile, the nation’s official poverty rate declined for the first time this decade, from 12.6 percent in 2005 to 12.3 percent in 2006. There were 36.5 million people in poverty in 2006, not statistically different from 2005. The number of people without health insurance coverage rose from 44.8 million (15.3 percent) in 2005 to 47 million (15.8 percent) in 2006.

Despite the favorable conditions, the number of uninsured Americans rose up. Following are the highlights of the US Census Bureau Report pertaining to health insurance coverage in the United States for 2006.

• Both the percentage and the number of people without health insurance increased in 2006. The percentage without health insurance increased from 15.3 percent in 2005 to 15.8 percent in 2006, and the number of uninsured increased from 44.8 million to 47.0 million.

• The percentage of people covered by employment-based health insurance decreased to 59.7 percent in 2006, from 60.2 percent in 2005.

• The percentage of people covered by government health programs decreased to 27.0 percent in 2006, from 27.3 percent in 2005. The percentage and the number of people covered by Medicaid were statistically unchanged at 12.9 percent and 38.3 million, respectively, in 2006.

• The percentage and the number of children under 18 years old without health insurance increased to 11.7 percent and 8.7 million in 2006 (from 10.9 percent and 8.0 million, respectively, in 2005) (Table 6). With an uninsured rate in 2006 at 19.3 percent, children in poverty were more likely to be uninsured than all children.


Source: US Census Bureau

Medical Tourism is the answer to the healthcare needs of uninsured Americans.

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