Americans Curbing Routine Medical Care in Tough Economic Times

This may come as no surprise, especially for those who’re currently being walloped by the economic crisis: a new study reported in the New York Times finds Americans have cut back spending on routine medical care far deeper than people in five other countries with universal health care.

The study was published by the National Bureau of Economic Research and based on surveys conducted in the U.S., Canada, France, Germany, and Great Britain. Researchers found the global economic slump has caused loss of wealth and income in all six countries. But  the U.S. came out highest in the number of survey respondents who reported reducing their use of routine medical care since the recession’s start in 2007—26.5 percent versus 5.3 percent in Canada, 7.6 percent in Britain, 10.3 percent in Germany, and 12 percent in France.

People in countries with universal health coverage also have some out-of-pocket medical costs. The study found that the larger the out-of-pocket costs, the more people cut back their usage of healthcare services. The U.S. once again came out on top with more of its citizens paying greater out-of-pocket costs than any of the other countries surveyed. The huge number of uninsured people--about 15 percent of the population—is also a chief reason why the U.S. outstrips the other five countries in the number of people forgoing routine medical care.

If a co-pay is involved, preventive services like mammograms, cervical screenings, and treatment for high blood pressure are often sacrificed when money is tight. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act wants to elevate preventive care as a crucial means to improving overall population health, which in turn would help to bring down healthcare costs. While there's much to nit-pick about the law, making preventive care a top public health priority is a major step in the right direction.

The law will require new health insurance plans beginning after September 23, 2010 to provide basic preventive services for adults, including pregnant women, and children free of co-pays, co-insurance, or having to meet deductibles. And starting January 2011 seniors enrolled in Medicare will no longer have to fork out a 20 percent co-pay for preventive services. They will also be entitled to a free wellness visit to their physicians once a year.

You can learn more about what the law covers at a new website called HealthCare.gov. Also worth checking out—the Kaiser Family Foundation’s implementation timeline for health reform lays out the different benefits of the health reform act and when they’ll kick in.

Photo credit: alancleaver_2000