INSURED BUT NOT PROTECTED: How Many Adults Are Underinsured?
Some 45 million uninsured American adults lack health insurance, but at least 16 million more were underinsured in 2003, meaning they did not have enough financial protection to cover their health expenses. The study found that the estimated 61 million with no insurance, sporadic insurance, or insurance that exposed them to catastrophic medical costs were at increased risk for not being able to obtain the quality care they needed. Half of the underinsured went without at least one of four needed medical services, double the rate of those with adequate insurance. Two-thirds of the sicker adults who were underinsured went without needed care. Nearly half of underinsured adults with chronic disease or poor health did not take their medications as prescribed.
