12/31/07:It's Time To Deliver On Health Care Reform - Citizen Action of Wisconsin
It's Time To Deliver On Health Care Reform
The Capital Times :: EDITORIAL :: A9
Monday, December 31, 2007
Robert Kraig
Health insurance costs in Wisconsin are among the highest in the nation at 23 percent above the national average. Now, a recently released Citizen Action of Wisconsin study adds another wrinkle to the story: There are actually vast differences in high health insurance costs within the state.
The new study, "Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Rankings 2008," found that while high health insurance costs reach across the state and are above the national average, the highest cost areas of the state pay 26 percent more for health insurance than the lowest cost areas. This amounts to a $3,800 annual difference in the cost of a family policy and over a $1,500 difference of a single policy for the same benefits package.
In addition, some relatively lower cost areas of the state had double digit cost increases this year.
The highest cost areas were in the northwestern, southeastern and central regions of the state. The fastest rates of health care inflation were in the Fox Valley and Green Bay area.
This study lends further credence to the growing public perception that the Wisconsin health care market is broken. There is no good explanation for having to pay $3,800 more for the same health insurance policy in Eau Claire or Milwaukee than one would have to pay in Madison.
The study also adds to the growing evidence that Wisconsin's very high health insurance costs are putting tremendous strain on the system and that tens of thousands of families risk losing their coverage unless our elected officials fundamentally reform the system.
Since World War II, most people have accessed health insurance through their jobs. Health insurance hyperinflation is placing severe stress on Wisconsin's employer-based health insurance system. A report released this fall by the University of Wisconsin's Center on Wisconsin Strategy found that only 58 percent of Wisconsin workers now get health insurance through their employer, down from 73 percent in 1979.
According to a Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust study, most of this decline has come from small firms with fewer than 50 employees, especially those with fewer than 10 employees. In fact, the proportion of the smallest employers offering health insurance benefits has dropped since 2002 from 58 percent to 45 percent.
There is mounting evidence that skyrocketing costs are beginning to endanger the health and financial well-being of those who are still covered by health insurance. A recent Families USA study found that over 1.2 million Wisconsinites pay more than 10 percent of their pretax incomes on health care costs.
According to a statewide poll commissioned by One Wisconsin Now, 54 percent of women under 50 said that they or a family member had delayed or skipped seeing a doctor because of the cost of health care. These are astoundingly high numbers, as 90 percent of these individuals had health insurance coverage. Delaying preventive care and disease management leads to more serious illnesses that are more expensive to treat, adding to the health care inflationary spiral.
In addition to the health consequences, high health insurance costs also put Wisconsin at an economic disadvantage by making job creation more expensive than in other areas of the country.
The Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Rankings 2008 study suggests using large mandatory buying pools to even the playing field. The idea is that the buying power of the state could be used to counterbalance the dominant market position of health care providers and hospital systems, and thus drive down costs. Healthy Wisconsin, the health care reform plan that was passed by the Senate, relies on such a model to reduce health care costs.
The state Senate took bold action on the health care crisis this summer when it passed Healthy Wisconsin, but the Assembly blocked the measure. For the health and economic welfare of the state, the Assembly must stop dodging this issue. Real comprehensive health care reform is long overdue and needs to be the top priority next year.
Robert Kraig is the program director for Citizen Action of Wisconsin, a grass-roots organization with more than 90,000 members. He is the author of "Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Rankings 2008," which can be found at www.citizenactionwi.org.
The Capital Times :: EDITORIAL :: A9
Monday, December 31, 2007
Robert Kraig
Health insurance costs in Wisconsin are among the highest in the nation at 23 percent above the national average. Now, a recently released Citizen Action of Wisconsin study adds another wrinkle to the story: There are actually vast differences in high health insurance costs within the state.
The new study, "Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Rankings 2008," found that while high health insurance costs reach across the state and are above the national average, the highest cost areas of the state pay 26 percent more for health insurance than the lowest cost areas. This amounts to a $3,800 annual difference in the cost of a family policy and over a $1,500 difference of a single policy for the same benefits package.
In addition, some relatively lower cost areas of the state had double digit cost increases this year.
The highest cost areas were in the northwestern, southeastern and central regions of the state. The fastest rates of health care inflation were in the Fox Valley and Green Bay area.
This study lends further credence to the growing public perception that the Wisconsin health care market is broken. There is no good explanation for having to pay $3,800 more for the same health insurance policy in Eau Claire or Milwaukee than one would have to pay in Madison.
The study also adds to the growing evidence that Wisconsin's very high health insurance costs are putting tremendous strain on the system and that tens of thousands of families risk losing their coverage unless our elected officials fundamentally reform the system.
Since World War II, most people have accessed health insurance through their jobs. Health insurance hyperinflation is placing severe stress on Wisconsin's employer-based health insurance system. A report released this fall by the University of Wisconsin's Center on Wisconsin Strategy found that only 58 percent of Wisconsin workers now get health insurance through their employer, down from 73 percent in 1979.
According to a Kaiser Family Foundation/Health Research and Educational Trust study, most of this decline has come from small firms with fewer than 50 employees, especially those with fewer than 10 employees. In fact, the proportion of the smallest employers offering health insurance benefits has dropped since 2002 from 58 percent to 45 percent.
There is mounting evidence that skyrocketing costs are beginning to endanger the health and financial well-being of those who are still covered by health insurance. A recent Families USA study found that over 1.2 million Wisconsinites pay more than 10 percent of their pretax incomes on health care costs.
According to a statewide poll commissioned by One Wisconsin Now, 54 percent of women under 50 said that they or a family member had delayed or skipped seeing a doctor because of the cost of health care. These are astoundingly high numbers, as 90 percent of these individuals had health insurance coverage. Delaying preventive care and disease management leads to more serious illnesses that are more expensive to treat, adding to the health care inflationary spiral.
In addition to the health consequences, high health insurance costs also put Wisconsin at an economic disadvantage by making job creation more expensive than in other areas of the country.
The Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Rankings 2008 study suggests using large mandatory buying pools to even the playing field. The idea is that the buying power of the state could be used to counterbalance the dominant market position of health care providers and hospital systems, and thus drive down costs. Healthy Wisconsin, the health care reform plan that was passed by the Senate, relies on such a model to reduce health care costs.
The state Senate took bold action on the health care crisis this summer when it passed Healthy Wisconsin, but the Assembly blocked the measure. For the health and economic welfare of the state, the Assembly must stop dodging this issue. Real comprehensive health care reform is long overdue and needs to be the top priority next year.
Robert Kraig is the program director for Citizen Action of Wisconsin, a grass-roots organization with more than 90,000 members. He is the author of "Wisconsin Health Insurance Cost Rankings 2008," which can be found at www.citizenactionwi.org.
Submitted by wnpj on Wed, 01/16/2008 - 2:19pm.