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Politics : Impeach George W. Bush -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: longnshort who wrote (92254)	8/4/2008 7:15:24 PM
From: Land Shark	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 93284

Chronic Illness Common Among Uninsured in the U.S., Study Finds By Justin Blum Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- An estimated 11.4 million working-age Americans without health insurance have chronic illnesses, among them diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, according to a study. Of those patients, 23 percent hadn't seen a health provider in the last year, compared with 6 percent of the chronically ill who had insurance, according to the study in the Annals of Internal Medicine released today. The uninsured who were chronically ill were six times more likely to list emergency rooms as where they went regularly for care. Patients with at least one chronic and treatable condition are 31 percent of the estimated 36 million uninsured Americans ages 18 to 64, according to the study. Some may face early disability and death for lack of care. The findings are at odds with statements by policy makers who argue the ``predicament of uninsured persons is often voluntary and rarely consequential,'' the authors wrote. ``The notion that we can just write off billions of uninsured people because they're young just isn't true,'' said Andrew P. Wilper, a doctor affiliated with the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle and the study's lead author, in a telephone interview today. Wilper's co-authors were from Harvard Medical School in Boston and the Cambridge Health Alliance, a teaching affiliate of the school. The study was funded by a government grant. The study analyzed data from interviews conducted with 12,486 patients from 1999 to 2004 as part of the government's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Those 65 and older were excluded because they are generally covered by the government's Medicare program. The results probably underestimate the health problems of people without insurance because they are less likely to know of their illnesses, the authors said. To contact the reporter on this story: Justin Blum in Washington at jblum4@bloomberg.net. Last Updated: August 4, 2008 17:00 EDT