50 Million Uninsured — Really?
Posted By Alan Partis on April 12, 2009
I read an very interesting news article from the Associated Press regarding Americans who do not have health insurance1. From the outset, let’s be very clear: everyone in the USA has access to medical care/services. What we’re talking about is the number of people who have an insurance policy that can arguably reduce the cost of medical care on a per individual basis (whether health insurance actually achieves this goal is a matter of debate for another day).
The article laments the fact that 50 million Americans do not have a health insurance plan.
But is this really a fact? Critical thinkers may wish to examine that further.
The most telling quote from the story is this:
“In the last election, only 10 percent of registered voters said they were uninsured.â€
Approximately 170 million people were registered to vote in the last election according to figures I found from CNN. That accounts for just 17 million uninsured folks. With a total adult (eligible to vote) population of roughly 240 million, that means that the rate of Americans who are both unregistered/ineligible to vote AND don’t have health insurance is 33%.2
Does that really make sense?
Why would there be such a high correlation between non-voters and uninsured Americans?
Simple logic dictates that the claim of 50 million uninsured Americans is either true or false.
If true, then these folks clearly don’t care enough about their situation (or simply aren’t bothered by it enough) to even take the simple step of actually voting. I’m left wondering why I should then be forced to give up even more of the earnings I work for, to give health insurance to these folks.
If false, then the Associated Press is lying to me and I’m left wondering about their motivations for undertaking such a policy.
Either way, I smell a rat. Something tells me that in reality there are no more than 20 million American who lack health insurance (a choice that a vast majority of folks make for themselves either consciously or indirectly through their actions). The article points out that politicians have noted that uninsured folks don’t help them win re-election — could it be because there really aren’t that many uninsured people to begin with?
Only when everyone starts coming clean and presents information openly and honestly can any clear thinking begin to resolve what may, or may not, be a problem in the first place.
1“No strength in numbers for America’s uninsured†Associated Press, April 11, 2009
2 The math is a bit hard to follow. I’m assuming that we have a total population of 300 million people of which 20% are children. I’m also assuming that the 50 million uninsured number includes children on a roughly even basis. Therefore, I’m assuming that the claim is that 40 million adults lack health insurance.
Just a boy from small-town western New York (Batavia) with strong convictions and a desire to express my opinions. I'm married and have a daughter with whom I am taking great pains to brainwash into my way of thinking (so far with great success).
Though I am a software engineer by day, I read a great deal about current events, history, and economics and philosophy. I'm certain that many of my former teachers will be pleasantly surprised to hear this. I've grown very interested in trying to help educate others about the liberty guaranteed to us in the United States Constitution and the economic theories on which this Country was founded.
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