A recent study shows that 62.1% of personal bankruptcy cases in 2007 were linked to medical expenses. Given our countries financial crisis it’s safe to say that this is an even bigger problem today in 2009. In this study released by Harvard professor Elizabeth Warren it showed that most medical debtors were middle class families that owned homes, were employed, and 75% had health insurance.
So what does this study reveal about our current health care situation? One serious illness can cause unaffordable medical expenses or a decrease in or lack of income which results in bankruptcy. Most families have nothing to fall back on if they become ill and lose their job, which consequently causes the loss of health insurance.
Most all bankruptcy debtors had some medical debt, but about half of the debtors, according to the study had mostly medical debt. While this study only encompasses a handful of bankruptcies, 2,314 to be exact, it does make sense. In 2005 laws were passed to make bankruptcy a bit harder to obtain, yet the numbers increased after a few years. Continue reading ‘Tough Times and Health Problems a Recipe For Bankruptcy’ »