KHI NEWS SERVICE
TOPEKA, Dec. 4 – Nearly one in five U.S. adults more than 40 million people can”t afford the health care they need, according to an annual report on the nation”s health newly released by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The report, “Health, United States, 2007,” is a compilation of more than 150 health tables prepared by CDC”s National Center for Health Statistics.
The report has a special section focusing on access to care that shows nearly 20 percent of adults reported they needed but did not receive due to cost one or more of these services in the past year: medical care, prescription medicines, mental health care, dental care, or eyeglasses.
“There has been important progress made in many areas of health such as increased life expectancy and decreases in deaths from leading killers such as heart disease and cancer. But this report shows that access to health care is still an issue where we need improvement,” said CDC Director Julie Gerberding.
In 2005, nearly one in 10 people between the ages of 18 and 64 said they were unable to get necessary prescription drugs during the past 12 months due to cost. Nearly 10 percent said they delayed receiving needed medical care.
Other report findings:
*
Young adults 18-24 years of age were more likely than children or older adults to lack a usual source of care and to be uninsured. About 30 percent of these young adults did not have a usual source of health care, and an equal percentage was uninsured.
*
One in 10 adults ages 45-64 years did not have a usual source of health care, and more than 5 percent of adults in this age group who had diagnosed high blood pressure, serious heart conditions, or diabetes reported not having a usual source of medical care.
*
In 2005, one out of five people under the age of 65 reported being uninsured for at least part of the 12 months prior to being interviewed. The majority of this group reported being uninsured more than 12 months.
*
One in 10 women aged 45-64 years with income below the poverty level reported delaying medical care due to lack of transportation.
*
About one-third of all children living below the poverty level did not have a recent dental visit in 2005, compared with less than one-fifth of children with higher income.
A copy of the full report is available for free at
www.cdc.gov/nchs/hus.htm
.