Commentary: Steve Roberts and Perry Bryant

Business, Labor, Health Groups Join Fight For Those Uninsured

The Charleston Gazette, May 4, 2006

Activities to highlight the plight of uninsured individuals are the focus of a weeklong series of events around West Virginia this week. Among the activities are a series of free health screenings provided at locations in four West Virginia cities: Charleston, Beckley, Huntington and Parkersburg.

In addition, services for the uninsured are available - not just during Cover the Uninsured Week, but throughout the year - at a number of free clinics and "federally qualified health clinics" in more than 100 primary care centers across West Virginia. They were organized as part of the national effort (www.covertheuninsured.org) to highlight the harsh realities faced by the uninsured and to increase awareness about the growing negative impact on those who still have private health insurance.

The facts about the uninsured situation in our nation and our state are worrisome. An estimated 46 million Americans are uninsured and about 370,000 West Virginians were uninsured for all or part of 2003. Today, that number is undoubtedly much higher.

Being uninsured is a problem not only for low-income Americans, but is a growing problem for many moderate-income and middle-income Americans. During 2004, more than eight of 10 uninsured Americans were in working families.

While these numbers are disturbing, they tell only half the story. Uninsured people live sicker and die earlier than insured people. Those who are uninsured receive less preventive care and delay seeking treatment for illnesses. When their illnesses are diagnosed, they are often well advanced.

The uninsured frequently seek care in the most expensive setting: emergency rooms and hospitals. This drives up health-care costs, and the cost of care the uninsured receive is passed on to those who have private insurance. And as costs continue to go up, employees pay more of the cost of their insurance and more businesses find it difficult to afford health insurance for employees. As more businesses cut back or drop insurance coverage, the number of uninsureds just increases. This cycle cannot continue much longer.

In West Virginia the average family health insurance plan is almost $1,800 a year more because of the care provided to the uninsured. Clearly, expanding health-care coverage to the uninsured is not just a moral imperative, it is sound economic policy.

Recognizing this, a diverse group of organizations has come together for the West Virginia activities of Cover the Uninsured Week. Putting aside their traditional differences, these organizations have united in their desire to spotlight the impact on the growing number of our friends and neighbors who are uninsured. The group, which includes business and labor, hospitals and consumers, the religious community and state agencies, has put aside historic differences to work on a common goal: covering the uninsured and addressing the growing problems of private-sector coverage.

Here is a list of the various West Virginia groups that are supporting the West Virginia Cover the Uninsured Week: AARP, Access West Virginia, American Heart Association, Catholic Community Services, Healthy Kids and Families Coalition, National Association of Social Workers West Virginia Chapter, Malone Consulting Services, The Manahan Group, Mountain State Blue Cross Blue Shield, West Virginia AFL-CIO, West Virginia Association of Free Clinics, West Virginia Chamber of Commerce, West Virginia Citizen Action Group, West Virginia Council of Churches, West Virginia Economic Justice Project, West Virginia Health Care Authority, West Virginia Hospital Association, West Virginia Nurses Association, West Virginia Primary Care Association, West Virginia State Medical Association, West Virginians for Affordable Health Care, West Virginia's State Planning Grant funded through the USDHHS Health Resources and Services Administration and WVU Institute for Health Policy Research.

These organizations are joining together to urge community and state officials to make affordable health insurance and greater coverage of the uninsured a top priority. The groups also want to highlight the negative impacts faced by those uninsured and showcase the perilous situation this creates for those who have private health insurance.

We are hopeful that this coalition will remain united and will continue its efforts on behalf of uninsured West Virginians long after the activities of this week are completed.

For additional information about Cover the Unisured Week go to www.CoverTheUninsured.org and www.wvahc.org , or call West Virginians for Affordable Health Care at (304) 344-1673.

Bryant is executive director of West Virginians for Affordable Health Care, and Roberts is president of the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce.