STATEMENT
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — May 21, 2009 |
Statement on New Report Showing Consequences If Health Reform Fails
A new Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) report projects that if federal reform efforts are not enacted, within 10 years the cost of health care for businesses could double and the number of uninsured Americans could reach 66 million — with middle-income families hardest hit. The report, conducted by researchers from the Urban Institute, was released today in Washington, DC. For more information, see www.rwjf.org/healthreform.
"It comes as no surprise to New Jersey residents to hear that our health care system is broken and getting worse, but a new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) gives us a window into the future to see just how bad things could get if we don't take actions to fix it.
The research shows us that if national health reform fails there would be a dramatic decline in the numbers of people insured through their employers, and millions more would become uninsured. There would be large growth in public programs, major increases in health care spending and growing levels of uncompensated care. While all income levels would be affected, middle-class working families would be hardest hit.
In New Jersey, we can't afford for our policymakers in Trenton and their colleagues in Washington to get this wrong. Already there are over 1.3 million people in our state who lack health coverage and do not get the care they need. These individuals are forced to gamble every day that they won't get sick or injured. Our businesses are struggling under the weight of ever increasing health care costs. During these tough economic times, more and more Americans are losing their jobs and their health insurance. Every time the unemployment rate goes up by just one percent, one million Americans lose their health coverage. Now more than ever, we must make sure that Americans have quality, affordable care to keep our families healthy and financially secure.
Fixing our health care system won't be easy. And not everyone is going to get exactly what they want. If we all work together — patients and doctors, businesses and government, Democrats and Republicans — we can build on what works in the current system and fix what's broken. That means reining in costs, focusing on quality care and ensuring that all Americans have choices — in plans and in doctors — so they can decide what's best for them."
Eve Weissman
Health Care Campaign Coordinator
NJ Citizen Action and NJ Citizen Action Education Fund
Over the next few months, the NJ For Health Care Campaign will be working with Professors at the Ramapo College School of Social Work to analyze data from over 500 Affordability Surveys collected from New Jersey residents across the State to determine how much New Jersey families can afford to spend on health care. We will present these findings to our policymakers in Trenton and Washington, demonstrating how much is truly affordable for NJ families.
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New Jersey Citizen Action Education Fund (NJCAEF) is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization, founded in 1983, promoting the empowerment of low- and middle-income people through research, education and training around public policy issues and direct counseling and services. For more information, visit http://njcaef.org/.
NJ For Health Care is a broad-based alliance of health care, consumer, labor, senior, women's, faith-based, student, disability, civil rights and social justice organizations working to find a long-term solution to the health care crisis facing New Jersey and the nation.
