Health care reform has passed, but plenty of problems still need to be solved—including those caused at least partly because of health care reform.
39 Percentage increase in policy premiums that insurance giant WellPoint planned (and still plans) on passing on to many California customers.
51 Percentage increase in profits reported by WellPoint in the first quarter of 2010. Bonus factoid: One in nine Americans is a member of a WellPoint-affiliated health plan.
60 Percentage of Americans currently uninsured who earn less than 200% of the poverty level ($21,660 per individual, $44,100 per family of four). Once health reforms go into effect, a family of four with a household income of $44K would receive government subsidies but would still have to pay roughly $2,800 annually out of pocket in health insurance premiums. Many people say that’s just too much for such a family to afford, and there’s plenty of speculation that poorer individuals and families won’t buy insurance even at the subsidized price.
$1,102.50 The maximum penalty a family with $44,100 in household income would have to pay as a penalty for not having health insurance in 2016 (maximum penalty is 2.5% of income). That’s about $1,700 less than they’d pay to have insurance, meaning it’s obviously more cost-effective—though obviously less healthy—to skip insurance and buy it only when they need it.
5,600 Approximate number of people lined up one recent evening at the Los Angeles Sports Arena—some people camped out overnight—waiting to get wristbands that would entitle them to free medical or dental treatment, thanks to the return of volunteer operation Remote Area Medical to L.A. R.A.M. figured into my previous disturbing health care stat round-up by extracting 2,274 teeth, giving out 1,984 pairs of eyeglasses, and taking care of 8,775 general medical visits during an eight-day clinic in L.A. last summer. It’s also worth noting that many of those who flocked to L.A. were seeking the free services of dentists, and there’s virtually no provision in the health reform bill for dental care.
$6,688 Amount extra that a family might have to pay annually, once reform measures are put into place, if they don’t participate in a work wellness program, according to the findings of two Harvard researchers.
$3,500,000 Differential between what a specialist and a doctor who is a general practitioner can expect to earn over the course of their careers, with general practitioners earning, on average, $107K less annually.
Under 10 Percentage of medical school graduates who choose to work in primary care, including pediatricians and general internists.
47 Percentage of surveyed patients who say they felt rushed by their doctors. Also, 12% say they were treated by doctors who didn’t know their names, and 20% categorized their doctors as “rude or condescending.”
40,000 Estimated shortage of family medicine practitioners in the U.S. by 2020, if current trends continue.
$500,000,000 Amount of administrative costs that WellPoint reportedly had reclassified as medical expenses in order to the mandate that 85% of insurance premiums pay for medical claims and related expenses.
$652,000,000 Amount spent on health care lobbying interests in 2009, up 14% from the year before.
Read more:
A Dozen Disturbing Health Care Statistics
Why Is Health Care So Expensive? Let Us Count the Conspirators