Health Insurance

According to a news release in US News and World Report, more than 45 million people in the United States are without medical insurance, for a number of reasons:

* 48% say they can’t afford insurance.
* 22.8% mention that insurance is not offered by their employers.
* 11.1% are unemployed.
* 5.4% are waiting for their insurance to go into effect.
* 12.7% have other excuses for not having insurance.

As the US economy continues to have difficulties, millions of people are forced to prioritize – Insurance or electricity? Insurance or groceries? Insurance or daycare? Maybe they need an Ohio health insurance quote? While these decisions are never easy, take the following into consideration:

* Medical expenses that are not covered by insurance are the #1 cause of bankruptcy in the United States
* Preventable illness makes up approximately 80% of the burden of illness, as well as 90% of all health care costs.
* Preventable illnesses account for eight of the nine leading categories of death.
* Uninsured kids were nearly three times as likely to not see a doctor.
* Lifetime medical costs average roughly $225,000 per person.
* 18 percent of lifetime costs for medical care is estimated to be incurred in the last year of life. This averages out to over $40,000.

The conclusion from all of this is that many people – insured or not - are postponing needed medical care or incurring massive debt, possibly going bankrupt, due to high out-of-pocket medical expenses. Health care expenditures have soared while the number of sickness or injury away from financial ruin. In fact, a recent poll finds that one in five (19%) surveyed said they experienced serious financial problems due to family medical costs.

Unfortunately, medical care is very expensive – reports show that health-care in the US is one of the most expensive in the world, forcing many to look for affordable health insurance in Ohio. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Trends in Health Care Costs and Spending report, people are saving on medical expenses in the following ways:

* 35% are relying on home remedies and over-the-counter medications, instead of seeing a doctor
* 34% are skipping dental care or checkups
* 27% put off or postponed needed medical care
* 23% don’t attend recommended tests or treatments
* 21% don’t always fill a prescription
* 15% cut pills in half or skip doses of medicine

Even more startling are these statistics from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality’s Health Care Cost and Utilization Project 2007, which reports the 10 most expensive medical conditions and their associated costs.

Condition — Average costs — Average charges

1. Infant respiratory distress syndrome — $45,542 — $138,224

2. Premature birth and low birth weight — $44,490 — $119,389

3. Spinal cord injury — $41,527 — $126,060

4. Leukemia — $40,826 — $114,488

5. Heart valve disorders — $36,836 — $116,751

6. Cardiac and circulatory birth defects — $35,960 — $101,412

7. Hodgkin disease — $29,743 — $82,435

8. Polio/other brain or spinal infections — $29,020 — $87,702

9. Intrauterine hypoxia or birth asphyxia — $27,962 — $74,942

10. Aneurysm — $27,001 — $83,897

When you look at the numbers, in the long run, which is more expensive – paying a monthly premium or paying the hefty out-of-pocket costs associated with not having insurance? Possibly these are good reasons for an Ohio health insurance quote?