A challenge to the common wisdom from the National Center for Policy Analysis:
A study claiming that more than half of all bankruptcies are caused by medical debt [54] is often cited, but the claim conflicts with four decades of economic research. The label “medical bankruptcy” was applied if out-of-pocket medical bills exceeded $1,000, even though out-of-pocket expenses of the average US household were $2,182 in the year studied.[55] Recalculating the study’s data, Dranove and Millenson conclude that only 17% of the sample “had medical expenditure bankruptcies.” [56] Well-designed economic studies have found no statistical link between bankruptcies and health problems.[57] In fact, household consumption is largely unchanged even in the face of very large medical bills.[58]
For the references to footnotes above, see: Health Care Reform: Do Other Countries Have the Answers?
Not that I am defending the status quo health care policy in the United States. It needs some real reform to bring down costs to consumers.
