Source: Daily Camera
Health care is an issue with life-or-death consequences that affects every person in America. It’s foundational to a productive, satisfying life. But so far, it has been neglected this election cycle. Immigration, inflation, abortion restrictions and wars in Gaza and Ukraine have drowned out discussions of expanding Medicare and shoring up public health in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Millions of Americans — nearly 1 in 12 by recent estimates — lack health coverage. In some states the numbers are much higher, like my home state of Texas, where about 1 in 6 people are uninsured.
Now, with the end of COVID-era policies that provided coverage for many low-income families, the ranks of the uninsured are growing. According to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of Americans without health insurance jumped from a historic low of 7.2% last summer to 8.2% — over 27 million people — in the first quarter of 2024.
Without policy changes, these numbers will only grow larger.
