Health Insurance Crisis
HEALTH INSURANCE CRISIS -- (House of Representatives - May 03, 2005)
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Dent). Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 4, 2005, the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Baldwin) is recognized for half the time until midnight.
GENERAL LEAVE
Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of my special order this evening.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from Wisconsin?
There was no objection.
Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, for the third consecutive year, this week our country has designated Cover the Uninsured Week. Led by former Presidents Ford and Carter, hundreds of national and local organizations, as well as thousands of Americans in all 50 States, are participating in week-long activities to highlight the national health care crisis. This is one of those annual events that I wish we did not need to observe.
Cover The Uninsured Week should be unnecessary. Moreover, millions of Americans who are underinsured should not be paying such a high price both emotionally and financially. There is simply no justifiable reason why the United States is the only industrialized country in the world that does not guarantee health care for all. So, Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to draw attention to the 45 million Americans who do not have health insurance and the millions more who are underinsured.
Our Nation is in the midst of an escalating health care crisis. As health care costs soar, it becomes increasingly difficult for Americans to obtain comprehensive and affordable health care. Our current health care system is failing not only the 45 million Americans who are uninsured, but also millions more who do not receive comprehensive health care. We can no longer turn our backs while millions more lose access to health care.
Additionally, health care is becoming increasingly expensive even for those who are fully insured. Rising premiums, increasing deductibles, and the increasingly high cost of prescription drugs are making health care more and more unaffordable for those who have insurance. The lack of comprehensive and affordable health care affects every single Congressional district in this Nation. To highlight this issue and the real impact that being uninsured has on the lives of Americans, I have decided to read to my colleagues from some of the people that I represent in their own words. Often the people most affected tell the story of our uninsurance crisis more eloquently than many policymakers.
I would like to begin with a few letters from my district in Wisconsin that express real people's struggles as part of our Nation's 45 million uninsured. Starting with Kimberly from Madison, Wisconsin, Kimberly writes "I am writing you today because of my family's frustration and anxiety over health care. My husband recently quit his job to launch his new company. Obviously, it will take some time for his new company to see any profit, much less income. In the meantime, we are without health insurance." She writes, "I am 5 months pregnant, and we have a 2-year-old son. Because of my preexisting condition, we cannot buy affordable health insurance. COBRA would cost us $1,200 a month. I am currently applying for Medicaid and other forms of public assistance as a last resort. This is ridiculous."
"As someone with no insurance, I wonder what could possibly be the problem with implementing a public health care system. Oh, I have heard the horror stories about having fewer choices and doctors, longer waiting lists for procedures, and less incentive among doctors and researchers to develop new techniques. What is most frightening for me is the chance that my son might get sick or my baby might be born with expensive complications and we are uninsured."
Janet from Portage, Wisconsin writes to me: "I have a 53-year-old brother who has psoriasis all over his body and arthritis caused by this. Three weeks ago he fell and needs surgery on his shoulder to repair it. He has no job, no money and no insurance. We started looking for a program to help him. There are none that we can find. There is nothing to help him get his shoulder fixed, but after it heals wrong and he is disabled because of it, then there are programs to help him. They will not help him get it fixed so he can find a job. Instead, they would rather support him for the rest of his life instead of trying to help him now."
Gail from Janesville, Wisconsin writes: "My husband lost his job in October 2003. He has applied for over 100 positions only to be told that he lacks a college degree or he is overqualified or they can only pay $8 an hour." Gail writes: "I was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 1989 and again in 2003. I have gone through breast cancer twice, and have undergone a mastectomy and reconstructive surgery. COBRA has run out and without a stable income, we cannot afford to pay the premiums of our own health care policy. My husband is 59 years old and I am 58 years old. We have no medical coverage. I have looked in every insurance company and get turned down because of my medical history. All our lives we paid into these insurance companies only to be turned away when we need that coverage the most."
Lisa from Madison writes: "I write to tell you and let you know that I understand why most people would not think there is a health care crisis. Most middle-class employed people never have to do an insurance questionnaire. We just sign on the dotted line and get into a group policy with our employer." Lisa writes: "I am a very healthy person and my husband and children are very healthy. We cannot get insurance. I think everyone should attempt to get an individual health insurance policy to see just how impossible it is. I am not a risk, really I am not. I am terrified right now because we are uninsured. The insurance companies are not concerned with our health. They are concerned with profits. That is sad and that is wrong."
Countless studies, including that of the Institute on Medicine has confirmed over and over again that uninsured has real consequences. One of those most serious and troubling consequences of being uninsured or underinsured is having to postpone or skip needed health care. Families USA reports that one out of five Americans has postponed needed medical care due to lack of coverage. And of those, more than one in three said the delay brought about significant pain or suffering. This is happening every single day all over America.
Another letter I received from Carol from Madison says: "As someone who has had no health insurance at all for 3 years, I can tell you that it was pretty miserable being one of the 45 million people in this country without health insurance. Not long ago, my best friend died at age 42 because of ovarian cancer because she did not have health insurance and waited too long to see what was causing all of her symptoms. Yes, people in America actually die from not having health insurance."
Darla from Fitchburg, Wisconsin writes: "I lost my job because of unpredictable attendance due to my health issues. Upon losing my job, I signed up for COBRA. Last week I received a letter indicating my COBRA eligibility ends soon. In order for me to get health coverage, I would have to work at least 20 hours per week. My physicians believe that would do me more harm than good relating to my health issues. If I do not get some kind of health insurance, I will need to stop all treatments as I have no money to pay for doctors' services. My prescription drugs will have to stop as I will not be able to pay for them either. What can I do?"
Heather from Waterloo, Wisconsin writes: "I am married. Together with my husband, I own a home. We live a modest, middle-class life, managing always to have what we need except for health care coverage. My husband has excellent health care at his job, but for me to also be covered by the plan, we would need to pay nearly $400 per month. That is two-thirds as much as our mortgage. Through school, I have worked less and less. In order to maintain health care coverage, I have only been able to afford short-term, major medical coverage. I am grateful that we can afford this, but it does make a difference. However, even now if I have a sore throat, I will wait for several days and see how I feel. I will wait because if I do not need to go, I will save money." She writes: "This is disturbing to me as a nursing student because I know about the importance of early treatment and prevention. It is upsetting to me as a person because I value my health, and it is unacceptable to me as a citizen because I know there are people just like me who wait and get sicker, or cannot even get the medications that they need."
These are heart-breaking stories, but perhaps what is more heart breaking is they are just not unique. Millions of American families are confronted with these impossible decisions regarding their health care every single day. According to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll, more Americans are personally worried about their health care costs than they are about losing their jobs, paying their rent or mortgage, losing money in the stock market, or being the victim of a terrorist attack.
I will give an example. Roberta from Janesville, Wisconsin writes: "I think the insurance bills for both medical and dental are horrendous. Both my husband and I work full time with two small children, living paycheck to paycheck. My insurance costs have caused us many heartaches with us owing more money that needs to be paid. As a result, I will not get a needed medical procedure done. Something drastically needs to change in the United States of America where hard-working families and individuals can get the treatment they need without going broke."
David from Cross Plains, Wisconsin, writes: "My wife and I have been self-employed for over 18 years and have paid thousands of dollars for health insurance premiums. As of a few months ago, we had to drop out and are now without health insurance. The cost is completely out of reach. In fact, it is nuts. Now that I am 50 years old, it is not a matter of if I will ever have health problems, it is when. Tammy, we will lose everything we have ever worked for. So much for the American Dream. Now we look forward to dying, broke and possibly homeless."
Mr. Speaker, part of the reason why I find these letters so compelling and why I make a point to share them with my colleagues and the American public is that finding and affording health care is a challenge faced by all types of Americans, young and old, those living in Wisconsin and those living in Texas, those who have jobs and those who do not. Put simply, this is a national crisis.
I have been especially troubled lately that instead of working hard to find a solution to the health care crisis, the majority party here in the House seems to be making the crisis worse for Americans in need. The House recently passed a bankruptcy bill which makes it more difficult for people to cope with the massive costs brought on by health care crises. This is ridiculous, especially since we know that nearly half of all personal bankruptcies filed in the United States are due to medical reasons, be it medical debt or an illness or injury that keeps somebody from the workforce and earning a living.
We are now poised to enact cuts to Medicaid, the Nation's health care safety net. On that note, I would like to share a few additional stories before I get a chance to call on my colleague from Missouri to make a few statements.
First I share the letter of Chris from Monona, Wisconsin. She writes, "I'm writing because I'm concerned that the fiscal 2006 budget resolution may include drastic funding cuts to Medicaid. I have lived with multiple sclerosis for 12 years, and I know that significant decreases in funding would be devastating to people like me who have chronic conditions. I'm still able to work, but other folks with MS depend on Medicaid to access critical health programs. I need you to stick up for me and the thousands of Americans with MS."
And then there is Mary from Madison, Wisconsin, who came to meet with me in my office to talk about Medicaid. Mary is a nurse and while she was certainly familiar with the Medicaid program, she never thought she would have to rely on Medicaid. But then her daughter had a child who was born with a heart defect. The child had to have heart surgery almost immediately after he was born and was in the hospital for a very long time. During this time, Mary's insurance for her daughter and her grandson expired, but they were very fortunate to have Medicaid to fall back on. Mary is incredibly thankful that she had Medicaid. Otherwise, her grandson's health would have suffered and she would literally be hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt.
And lastly, there is the story of Silvia from Fitchburg, Wisconsin. Silvia was uninsured when she was hospitalized with a need for an appendectomy. Even after the hospital charity program reduced her bill, she still owed over $11,000 to the hospital. Sometimes bill collectors call her home five times a day. Silvia chips away at this bill, sending $20 to $50 a month.
Mr. Speaker, before I continue, I yield to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Carnahan) who has some words to share about Cover the Uninsured Week.
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Ms. BALDWIN. I thank the gentleman for his words. As I was earlier sharing some of the letters written to me by my constituents, I recognized how powerful those stories are. I thank the gentleman also for sharing his own and his own experience with this issue. I am sure it strengthens his advocacy on behalf of all of his constituents and all Americans.
Mr. Speaker, when I first announced that I was going to seek a seat in Congress several years ago, I chose the location of the football stadium in my hometown, the stadium where the UW Badgers play their football games. It is a stadium with a capacity of just under 60,000 people. The reason I chose that location was to bring to light the fact that if you filled that stadium, every seat, with people who are uninsured from that congressional district, there would still be a line to get in. That is how many people there are. In other congressional districts around the country, you could fill multiple football stadiums of that same size.
It is staggering. It is hard for us to get a grip on what it really means that there are 45 million Americans with no health insurance at all. And these are people who have had longtime uninsurance. In fact, the Census Bureau, who puts out that number, bases it on being uninsured for a full year. If you count the people who are only uninsured for a month or two, some estimates go as high as 70 million Americans who experience some time without insurance. Forty-five million is a staggering number. And add to that some of the people I referenced earlier who have some type of insurance but are still facing exorbitant expenses, whether it is rising premiums, enormous deductibles, copays. It is a system in crisis.
I hope as we observe Cover the Uninsured Week and as we think about our responsibilities as Members of Congress representing many people who are uninsured and underinsured that we take serious aim at this crisis in our country. I hope that in a few years, maybe even next year, that there will be no need to commemorate and observe Cover the Uninsured Week. This is a problem that screams out for our response. I invite my colleagues to join me in working to provide health care for every American.
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