• About Us
  • Who Are We
  • Work With Us
Thursday, April 22, 2021
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Globe Post
39 °f
New York
44 ° Fri
46 ° Sat
40 ° Sun
41 ° Mon
No Result
View All Result
The Globe Post
No Result
View All Result
Home National

34Mln Americans Lost Someone Who Couldn’t Afford Medical Treatment

Alex Graf by Alex Graf
11/12/19
in National
Health Care Protest

Protesters against Republicans’ healthcare bill rally outside the US Capitol on June 28. Photo: AFP

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

More than 13 percent of American adults — roughly the equivalent of 34 million people — know someone who couldn’t afford to pay for medical treatment and died as a result in the last five years, according to a new Gallup/West Health study published Tuesday.

Democrats, independents, people of color, younger Americans, and lower-income families were the most likely among those surveyed to know someone who has died due to a lack of healthcare.  

The study also found that in the last 12 months, 22.9 percent of Americans or about 58 million adults, experienced “medication insecurity” or the inability to pay for prescribed medication, with women and Democrats seeing statistically significant increases in medication insecurity since January. 

A total of 89 percent of respondents said U.S. prescription drug prices are “much higher” or “somewhat higher” than what consumers should be paying compared to just 11 percent of respondents who said prices are “about right” or lower than what consumers should be paying.

Additionally, 66 percent said the Trump administration has made “not much” or no progress at all to limit the rising cost of prescription drugs compared to 27 percent who said the administration has made a “fair amount” or a “great deal” of progress. 

In Congress, the House of Representatives will vote soon on a bill that would allow the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate lower prices for costly prescription drugs and the U.S. Senate is working on a bipartisan bill which would create an out of pocket maximum on prescription drugs for Medicare beneficiaries and require pharmaceutical companies to reimburse Medicare if drug prices rise faster than the inflation rate. 

Not a single person in America, the richest country on Earth, should be able to say someone they know died because they couldn't afford treatment—let alone 34 MILLION people.

Medicare for All now. https://t.co/rYoQ503fcP

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) November 12, 2019

The Gallup survey is an indication that healthcare will continue to be a top issue for many Americans, raising the stakes in the ongoing intraparty debate on healthcare in the Democratic presidential primary. Among the top four candidates, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders are advocating for a single-payer “Medicare for All” healthcare system similar to Canada, the UK, or Australia. 

Meanwhile, Former Vice President Joe Biden and South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg favor a public option, which would mean creating a publicly funded alternative to private insurance that would compete on the existing insurance markets.

In the summer of 2017, the Trump administration and a Republican-led Congress attempted to “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act, but ultimately failed after public backlash and defections from key Republicans needed to pass the legislation in the Senate. The legislation would have made substantial cuts to Medicaid and ended cost-sharing subsidies for insurance premiums, and a score from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office concluded it would have resulted in 23 million Americans losing their health insurance while reducing the deficit by $119 billion over 10 years.

While the Trump Administration did ultimately succeed in repealing the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate, which incurred a fine on those who did not sign up for health insurance, the president ultimately decided to hold off on further healthcare legislation until after the 2020 election.

Do Most Americans Support a Medicare For All Healthcare System?

ShareTweet
Alex Graf

Alex Graf

Keep up with his latest writing on climate, water, healthcare and more by following him on twitter @mjcabooseman

Related Posts

Protestor holding a sign for Adam Toledo
Opinion

Hey Mr. Policeman, Stop Killing Our Kids

by Stephen J. Lyons
April 21, 2021
A candlelight vigil in Garden Grove, California, after the shooting that left eight people dead in Atlanta, including six Asian women
Featured

American Nightmare: The Asian-American Experience

by Albert Kim
April 17, 2021
Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson delivers a speech, 2016
Opinion

The Hippocratic Oath Stops at the Arkansas Border

by Edward C. Halperin
April 8, 2021
President Biden speaks about the Colorado shootings at the White House.
Opinion

US Gun Violence: Biden, You Need to Do Something. Now

by Stephen J. Lyons
March 26, 2021
COVID Stimulus Checks: Does Victory Include Abandoning the Most Vulnerable?
Opinion

COVID Stimulus Checks: Does Victory Include Abandoning the Most Vulnerable?

by Thespina Yamanis
March 25, 2021
Jake Angeli speaks to a US Capitol Police officer.
Opinion

Attempted US Capitol Coup a Security and Existential Crisis

by Ryan Skinnell
March 3, 2021
Next Post
UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn

In High-Stakes UK Election, Underdog Labour Party Charts Unique Path

Everything You Need to Know About the Bolivian Coup and What Comes Next

Everything You Need to Know About the Bolivian Coup and What Comes Next

Recommended

Bao Choy

Hong Kong Journalist Convicted Over Public Database Searches

April 22, 2021
Derek Chauvin

Ex-Policeman Derek Chauvin Found Guilty of George Floyd’s Murder

April 21, 2021
Protestor holding a sign for Adam Toledo

Hey Mr. Policeman, Stop Killing Our Kids

April 21, 2021
Alexey Navalny turned his February 2 hearing into a blistering attack on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Navalny’s Doctors Denied Access as Kremlin Foe Is ‘Very Weak’

April 20, 2021
The UN chemical weapons watchdog could impose sanctions on Syria this week.

Syria Faces Sanctions at Chemical Weapons Watchdog

April 20, 2021
António Guterres

World Running Out of Time to Tackle Climate Crisis: UN

April 19, 2021

Opinion

Protestor holding a sign for Adam Toledo

Hey Mr. Policeman, Stop Killing Our Kids

April 21, 2021
A candlelight vigil in Garden Grove, California, after the shooting that left eight people dead in Atlanta, including six Asian women

American Nightmare: The Asian-American Experience

April 17, 2021
Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson delivers a speech, 2016

The Hippocratic Oath Stops at the Arkansas Border

April 8, 2021
Erdogan Threatens to Open Europe Gates for Refugees

Turkey’s Latest Crackdown Spells Dangerous New Normal for Human Rights Defenders

March 29, 2021
President Biden speaks about the Colorado shootings at the White House.

US Gun Violence: Biden, You Need to Do Something. Now

March 26, 2021
COVID Stimulus Checks: Does Victory Include Abandoning the Most Vulnerable?

COVID Stimulus Checks: Does Victory Include Abandoning the Most Vulnerable?

March 25, 2021
Facebook Twitter

Newsletter

Do you like our reporting?
SUBSCRIBE

About Us

The Globe Post

The Globe Post is part of Globe Post Media, a U.S. digital news organization that is publishing the world's best targeted news sites.

submit oped

© 2018 The Globe Post

No Result
View All Result
  • National
  • World
  • Business
  • Interviews
  • Lifestyle
  • Democracy at Risk
    • Media Freedom
  • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Columns
    • Book Reviews
    • Stage
  • Submit Op-ed

© 2018 The Globe Post