NUMC KEY PARTICIPANT IN KAISER COMMISSION ON MEDICAID AND THE UNINSURED
August 11, 2009
Contact: Shelley Lotenberg
(516) 572-6055
shelley@numc.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
NUMC KEY PARTICIPANT IN KAISER COMMISSION ON MEDICAID AND THE UNINSURED
HUGE HONOR FOR NHCC TO HAVE BEEN SELECTED AS ONE OF ONLY FOUR NATIONWIDE SITES TO PARTICIPATE IN RECENTLY RELEASED REPORT, HIGHLIGHTING IMPACT ON FAMILIES WHO LOST JOBS AND MEDICAL INSURANCE DURING RECESSION
East Meadow, New York, ……Arthur A. Gianelli, President/CEO of the Nassau Health Care Corporation announced that the NHCC was a key participant in a recently released Kaiser Family Foundation Commission on Medicaid study in which Nassau’s public health system was one of only four nationwide sites. The report and video drew on interviews and focus groups to examine at the grassroots levels the experiences of families, employers, safety-net providers and community organizations in four U.S. communities hard hit by the recession. The communities are Beloit, Wisconsin; Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida; Long Island, New York and Sonoma, California. A team of researchers from the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured conducted the site visits in the four American cities to learn more about the impact of the continuing recession, especially with respect to health coverage, access and health itself. The increased joblessness since the recession started has caused 5,000,000 more Americans to become uninsured, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation analysis.
“It was a huge honor for the NHCC to have been selected as one of only four sites nationwide to participate in the prestigious Kaiser Family Foundation study. The findings of the report are powerful, convey the struggles facing families in the recession and underscore the dire need for healthcare reform,” stated Gianelli. “It is a very valuable report that brings to the forefront the hardships that the middle class and others are facing following job loss and lack of medical insurance.”
Several NUMC patients participated in the focus groups and a number of community residents along with individuals from other counties shared their financial difficulties and challenges in securing care without medical insurance. The report explores the financial and personal struggles of families who have suffered economic reversals and lost health coverage, forcing many to juggle bills and postpone visits to the doctor while they scramble to find a new job. It reveals that many people who have lost jobs are exhausting their savings and collecting limited unemployment benefits, and yet still do not qualify for public safety net programs such as Medicaid. The goal was to let the nation know that public programs are available, especially during economic downturns.
The following key findings emerged from the study:
The recession highlights wide gaps in the nation’s health care system.
The uninsured and under-insured delay and forgo important health care due to cost.
More and better efforts are needed to connect families with assistance programs
The safety-net is critical but cannot fill the coverage gaps.
“It is a significant study, at a time when the nation is embarking on health care reform, and the study’s implications can help in assessing the adequacy and responsiveness of policy solutions designed to assist Americans hurt by the recession and others struggling to afford health coverage and care,” concluded Gianelli.
For a link to review the study, please go to: www.kff.org.