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December 20, 2007Cancer and the UninsuredData released from the American Cancer Society apparently shows that uninsured cancer patients are "twice as likely to die with five years as those with private coverage." An Associated Press estimate - based on hospital cancer deaths in 2005 gathered by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality information and other data - suggests that at least 20,000 of the nation's 560,000 annual cancer deaths are uninsured when they die. Experts said that estimate sounds reasonable. That's around 4 percent of the total cancer death toll. One reason is that most fatal cancers occur in people 65 or older - an age group covered by the federal Medicare program. Another is that more than 80 percent of adults under 65 have some form of coverage, including private insurance or the Medicaid program for the poor, according to various estimates. Some are enrolled in Medicaid or other programs after diagnosis, when the condition worsens and their finances erode. But such 11th hour coverage can be too late; early detection is the key to catching many cancers before they've grown beyond control, experts said. "Insurance makes a big difference in how early you are detecting disease," said Ken Thorpe, an Emory University health policy researcher. Now, cancer is always a burden, and cancer deaths always a grueling tragedy. Having said that, we have to recognize that premature cancer deaths that can be attributed to a lack of insurance appear to be relatively small (4% of total cancer mortality, according to the AP). And, if you believe widely quoted figures about the numbers of uninsured that put their numbers at 47 million, cancer mortality per se in this group isn't a major problem. Having said all of that, we can definitely do much better. Outcomes for patients with AIDS, cancer, or diabetes for that matter are undoubtedly better for patients with good private insurance. The solution? Break the link between insurance and employment, through some mix of either a capped tax deduction or a refundable tax credit that would give low-income families and Americans that don't qualify for public programs a way to buy affordable health insurance from a national menu of plans. This would give every American access to portable health insurance policies. We should also remember that the U.S. leads the world in cancer survival for most types of cancer. Our challenge is to fix the gaps in private insurance coverage for the uninsured without impairing our commitment to cutting edge cancer treatment. Posted by Paul Howard at December 20, 2007 03:52 PM CommentsPost a comment |
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