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SALT LAKE CITY — Medical bills are a burden for thousands of Americans. Health analysts report health care-related expenses have been one of the fastest growing drivers for economic hardship for many Americans.
A new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows one in four Americans couldn't pay for medical bills in 2012, which is up from 2011.
Researchers from the National Institutes of Health surveyed more than 43,000 families in the United States. The report shows the hardest hit were families who fell under the poverty level, at $48,000 a year for a family of three.
Medical bills were also a significant struggle for those families who had at least one person uninsured; and the report showed families with children ages 0 to 17 years were more likely than families with no children to experience financial burdens of medical care.
The results of the study impact thousands of Utahns who fall through the cracks of medical care coverage. According to health analysts in Utah, that's roughly 60,000 people.
Taylorsville resident Ben Williams is among them.
"I have pain meds, but I can't take enough of them to dull the pain because I can't afford to keep getting more and more and more," Williams said.
- In 2012, more than one in four families experienced financial burdens of medical care.
- Families with incomes at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL) were more likely to experience financial burdens of medical care than families with incomes above 250 percent of the FPL.
- Families with children aged 0–17 years were more likely than families without children to experience financial burdens of medical care.
- The presence of a family member who was uninsured increased the likelihood that a family would experience a financial burden of medical care.
Source: CDC
The 35-year-old broke his back as a kid and has lived with pain ever since. He described his life as being stuck at home with cabin fever because he said the back pain prevents him from holding down a job.
"I can't afford the surgery to fix the problem so that I can get back to work and start paying taxes again," he said.
Each step and movement is labored for Williams. He said he's been trying to qualify for disability and Medicaid but so far hasn't been able to find an option that fits his circumstances.
"I take in X-rays and MRIs showing that bone is grinding on bone, severing nerves," Williams said. "That's why my legs go out from time to time."
Utah health analysts say Utahns like Williams who are falling through the cracks of health care coverage don't earn enough to enroll in the Affordable Care Act marketplace but don't qualify for Medicaid either.
"This is particularly an acute problem for individuals in poverty," said Lincoln Nehring, with Voices for Utah Children. "States have an important decision in making sure that families in poverty have affordable access to health care coverage, and that's around the Medicaid expansion."
Gov. Gary Herbert has said he would expand Medicaid to cover more of the state's uninsured and that it would happen under the Affordable Care Act. However, the governor wasn't specific on what approach the state will take.
As for Williams, he's grateful to have the help of family to get him through this rough patch of being unable to pay for medical bills and living with chronic back pain.
"If it weren't for my family I wouldn't be (getting by)," he said.
