Unemployed, Uninsured: Newly Jobless Struggle To Get Health Care

Americans across the country are cutting back on health care services, including doctor's visits and elective surgeries, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The new trend comes amid a broader drop in health-care use as more Americans lose their jobs and their health insurance. Such cutbacks have happened before in recessions, but the drop seems to be more pronounced this time, industry analysts say.

Even those who are insured have opted for lower cost plans with higher deductibles. Because of that trend, many families are choosing to seek less care because they would have to pay for it out of pocket.

In a recent blog post on The New York Times, doctor Danielle Ofri writes about a growing demographic of patients she calls the "recently-laid-off-now-without-insurance." She tells the story of a 52-year-old patient, laid off six months ago by the bank she had worked at for over a decade, left without health insurance.

Not only did the patient's situation make her unwilling to seek care for conditions she already had, like painful arthritis in her knee, but the stress of unemployment also took its toll on her health, increasing her weight and blood pressure.

Ofri explains,

Nearly 15 million Americans were in the situation she was in -- unemployed, uncertain financial future, under stress and likely to face more medical problems.

In terms of public health, this is like a natural disaster wreaking havoc on society.