Census data show many in Va. without health insurance
The U.S. Census Bureau’s first estimate of how many people don’t have health insurance finds the highest Virginia perecentages in the state’s college towns.
Harrisonburg (James Madison University), with 9,455 people lacking health insurance, had the highest percentage of uninsured in Virginia—28.5 percent—in the bureau’s Small Area Health Insurance Estimates.
The numbers, which were released yesterday, are based on 2006 data.
Montgomery County, which includes Blacksburg (Virginia Tech), was at 27.7 percent; Charlottesville (the University of Virginia), 24.7 percent; Lexington (Washington and Lee University and Virginia Military Institute), 22.2 percent; and Williamsburg (the College of William and Mary), 19.8 percent.
Overall, the state had 1,034,424 people, or 15.5 percent, without health insurance in 2006. The number probably has increased since then, said Judith Cash, deputy director of the Virginia Health Care Foundation.
“The world has changed significantly since 2006 in terms of the economy, people having jobs, and people having health insurance,“ she said.
Lou Markwith, executive director of the Virginia Association of Free Clinics, said he has seen a 20 percent increase in the past two years in the number of people who qualify for his group’s volunteer-provided medical services.
Michael Cassidy, executive director of the Commonwealth Institute, counted about 70 localities higher than the state average and about 60 lower.
“Of the ones with particularly high rates, you see a real mix of urban and rural areas in the state,“ Cassidy said. “It highlights the challenges we face. It’s not just a problem of cities versus counties or urban versus rural. Across the state, families are struggling with this problem of not having insurance.“
Low-income people fared worse. Statewide, about 30 percent of them were uninsured. In Arlington County, about 73 percent of them were uninsured.
A low-income family is defined as one living at twice the poverty level or below it.
In the Richmond area, Hanover County had 11.6 percent uninsured; Henrico County, 13.8 percent uninsured; Chesterfield County, 14.1 percent; Richmond, 15.3 percent; and Charles City County, 19.4 percent.
Petersburg had one of the lowest rates of uninsured at 9.4 percent; Hopewell was at 9.9 percent.
As for the high rates of uninsured people in college towns, Cassidy said it may reflect an attitude of “young invincibles” who don’t think they need health insurance, as well as the difficulty of starting a career.
“It reveals some of the challenges of how you hold on to insurance when you’re in transition in your life,“ he said.
Contact Katherine Calos at (804) 649-6433 or
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Reader Reactions
1) Funny how everyone is all too concerned about money, expenditures, deficits, etc. (the bottom line) when the question is about helping people in this country
—but, let there be a reason to go to war (or just a good war to go to, without reason) and the bottom
Thanks, gqrich!
Learn the truth, not the lies.
Devils,
“Who” is the White House is not as important as “What” is being done by the White House.
What I see scares me. Uncontrolled spending of our money, illegal takeover of business and healthcare only to mention a few.
Have you read the proposed bill? This stuff will control our everyday lives.
End of life counseling, elimination of private insurance, agenda-driven sex ed in schools, forced vaccinations in your home, etc. Way too much Big Brother in there.
Let’s face facts…You are all mad because an intelligent black man is now in charge…
Let’s just say I reject the notion that he’s intelligent. He’s inarticulate without a teleprompter and, frankly, I can’t point to one thing of significance that he’s gotten right in the first 6 months of his administration. Sorry, but the facts don’t support the fact that the man is intelligent. He hasn’t mastered the facts of his own healthcare bill, he put his foot in his mouth on skip the Gates arrest and North Korea, Syria, Iran and Venezuela are laughing at us.
Don’t try to point out that he was smart enough to be elected president, because you’ll then have to concede that Bush was too - and you don’t want that do you?
Frankly, I’d love it if we had an intelligent black man in the white house, but, we don’t, so I lament. I’d love it if we had an articulate black man in the white house, but, we don’t. Errr, uuuuuuhhhhh, errrrrrr, I uhhhhhhh - sorry that’s not articulate.
Let’s face facts…You are all mad because an intelligent black man is now in charge and it is consuming you to the point that you will lash out at anything his administration proposes. Republican policies, or lack there of, have failed. You are out of ideas, offer no alternatives and the only thing you can offer up is lies, scare tactics, and fringe politics. You had your chance and you blew it. You have no one to blame but yourselves.
Good point Fred. I, myself, have negotiated dental charges even though I have dental insurance (which is almost like not having any). My point is we have a great many people that go to emergency rooms without insurance and they do not barter costs or services, they just use it, claim they can’t pay and the negotiation is out the window with the full charge trickling down to us who do pay in the long run.
It just seems to me that whether we have health care through the government or not, either way we are paying for the uninsured as we speak, on the state level and on the local level for certain. I feel that the general public is not informed enough to see just how badly we are all affected.
jerry78linda….What I am pointing out is that the costs that are being used to justify socialized medicine, are highly inflated and are almost never the final costs paid by insurers the Govt. or individuals. Please see my earlier post about people being responsible for reviewing and questioning medical bills. Your point about not being able to negotiate medical costs is just rediculous, unless you have absolutely no negotiating skills. I have negotiated medical and dental costs to 1/4 of the original cost, just by telling the provider that I would go elsewhere for my service. If people would negotiate with their providers, you must be knowlegable on the real cost, they could save thousands on medical and dental costs.
Why do Dr’s need 3 cars, French vacation?
Maybe because of the 60-70 hour work weeks, malpractise insurance costs, student loans for years of schooling. More attacks on those who are willing to sacrifise and make risks to earn these types of living in this country, for which the current administration wants to condemn, but also tax to pay for those less willing.
Also wanted to mention this past weekend’s letter to editor on health care. Person stated both spouse and themselves made a good living freelancing, but because they were self-employed they did not have health coverage. Seem a life choice to me. Why not a high deductible or annual contributions to a health savings plan. Did not mention how much they might have put into an IRA plan?
When working I benefited from an employer who want good coverage for his family so he was also willing to pay for the same coverage for his employees.
No insurance for Walmart or McDonald’s workers? I looked at that as an incentive to move on to better job so I could get health insurance and other employment benefits. Why should I wait to have someone else pay my way.
There is just no way the country can afford the pipe dreams of this administration. Hey, great job on that cash for clunkers obama program! At least the auto unions are happy!
Randy,
You’re right on.
Devils doesn’t see the difference between our moral and ethical obligation as citizens and our obligations as taxpayers. Two vastly different areas.
One is voluntary and the “right thing to do” the other is involuntary redistribution of wealth.
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