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Sava
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GO GO GO!
Mar 2001
time: 23:29
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quote:
National perspective.
According to a national study (Melissa B. Jacoby, Teresa A. Sullivan, and Elizabeth Warren, "Medical Problems and Bankruptcy Filings," Nortons Bankruptcy Adviser, May 2000) at least 40% of bankruptcies in 1999 were due at least in part to medical debt. Additionally, among debtors 65 and older, 47.6% of personal bankruptcies were due primarily to medical debt.
The study also found that seniors and women, as well as families headed by single women, were the groups in bankruptcy that were hardest hit by medical expenses ("Medical Bills Play Bankruptcy Role," The New York Times, 4/26/2000).
According to a recent study entitled "The Fragile Middle Class" (Yale University Press, 2000), "behind most bankruptcy filings lies misfortune, not profligate spending" ("Bankruptcy Borne of Misfortune, Not Excess," New York Times, 9/3/2000). "Bankruptcy is a solution invoked one at a time by families who have fallen through the social safety net."
"Economists have predicted for some time that bankruptcies would reach new highs in 2001 as the recession too a toll on the finances of consumers and corporations alike. Some experts expect the surge to continue this year" ("2001 Bankruptcy Filings Set Record," New York Times, 2//20/2002).
Local bankruptcy data.
Data source and analysis. Local bankruptcy data presented in this report reflect bankruptcies filed in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of Illinois during December 2001. Statistical research was conducted by the Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation.
Total bankruptcy filings. There were 279 bankruptcy cases during the month of December 2001, and approximately 3,200 for the entire year.
Percentage of filings that involve medical debt. Approximately 58% of the studied bankruptcy filings involved medical debt. This number does not include medical debt that was paid for with credit cards or by borrowing from a loan company. A greater portion of bankruptcy filings in December 2001 in Central Illinois (58%) involved medical debt than the national average (40%) from 1999. Among consumers who had any medical debt when filing for bankruptcy, medical debt accounted for 10 to 25% of the total debt owed.
Distribution of medical debt in bankruptcy filings. Approximately 20% of bankruptcy filings involved a medical debt of less than $1,000. Almost 40% of bankruptcy filings involved a medical debt of less than $5,000. These figures indicate that even small medical debts can have a huge impact on people's lives and contribute to bankruptcy. At least 11% of bankruptcy filings involved a medical debt of over $10,000.
This is not surprising, as just one serious medical incident, such as an accident or a bout with cancer, can easily cost over $10,000 - plunging ordinary people suddenly into deep debt. And some bankruptcy filings involved medical debt exceeding $50,000 or even $100,000.
For more information, contact:
Champaign County Health Care Consumers
44 East Main Street, Suite #208
Champaign, IL 61820
(217) 352-6533 or cchcc@prairienet.org
http://www.prairienet.org/cchcc/med-dp2.htm
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Health insurance IS important, or else it wouldn't be a big deal that 40 million Americans, over half of which are children, don't have any insurance.
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16-07-2003 18:28
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