Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 25, 2013
Contact:
Steffie Woolhandler, M.D., M.P.H., cell: (617) 312-2766 , swoolhan@hunter.cuny.edu
David Himmelstein, M.D., cell: (617) 312-0970 , dhimmels@hunter.cuny.edu
Mark Almberg, PNHP, (312) 782-6006 , cell: (312) 622-0996 , mark@pnhp.org
Insured but unable to afford health care
Affordable Care Act will leave tens of millions underinsured, facing choice between "life or debt,' say Journal of General Internal Medicine editorialists
In an editorial responding to a new study on skimpy health insurance among low-income, insured Americans, two policy experts review extensive data showing that tens of millions of insured Americans have grossly inadequate coverage, and that the problem of underinsurance is growing.
The editorial in the Journal of General Internal Medicine (JGIM) was approved by the journal's editors for publication on today's date and will appear on its website next week. The text of the article is available here .
Paradoxically, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) may actually increase underinsurance, say the editorialists, Drs. Steffie Woolhandler and David Himmelstein.
"Obamacare is lowering the bar for health insurance," said Dr. Himmelstein, a professor of public health at the City University of New York and primary care doctor. "The new coverage sold through the insurance exchanges will leave many families paying 40 percent of their health costs out-of-pocket even after they've laid out thousands for premiums. And the administration is allowing states to institute co-payments under Medicaid, even for the poorest of the poor."
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