A survey released Aug. 20 reveals that increasing numbers of Americans are going into debt, not getting adequate medical treatment, and having difficulties paying for basic necessities such as food, heat, or housing because of the cost of health care.
The study by the Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation supporting independent research on health care, noted, “A perfect storm of negative economic trends is battering working families across the United States.”
The study cited rising food and gas prices, noting that the federal minimum wage is now $3 an hour lower than it was 40 years ago after adjusting for inflation. Twenty-eight percent of the working-age population went without health insurance for at least part of 2007, up from 24 percent in 2001. Half of those surveyed with incomes of less than $20,000 went without insurance in 2007.
