Economy Affecting Medical Treatment

[dollardaze]

Americans feeling the effects of the nation's present economy are having to make many hard decisions. One of those decisions is whether or not to pay a visit to the doctor, or which prescribed medications can be purchased and which ones are too expensive to buy.

Our nation's ailing economy is leading many Americans to skip doctor visits, skimp on their medicine, and put off mammograms, Pap smears and other tests. And physicians are beginning to worry that the result will be sicker patients who need even more costly treatment in the long run.

In Lombard, Ill., Donald Hendricks lost his job over the summer at an event-planning company. When two of his children came down with a fever and sore throat several weeks ago, he could not afford the gas money to drive them to the doctor. He gave them soup and soda instead, and they got better.''I never felt the crunch like this before,'' Hendricks said.

In Indianapolis, Raechelle Miles lost her job at an auto parts plant in July, and lost almost everything else in a tornado. Her dental fillings are now falling out, and she is putting off a visit to the dentist, even though she realizes that may lead to more expensive treatment later on.

The numbers show Americans are increasingly putting their health at risk:

More and more are postponing needed medical care, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Tuesday. The number who said they or a family member have put off needed care climbed to 36% in the October telephone poll, up from 29% in April. Almost one-third had skipped a recommended test or treatment, up from 24%. In both cases, about one-fifth said their condition got worse as a result.

The number of prescriptions that were filled dropped more than 1% for the quarter ending in June which is the first time it hasn't risen, according to IMS Health, which has been tracking such data for 12 years.

A July survey by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners found that 11% of Americans had either reduced the number of prescription medicines they take or cut the dosage by such means as splitting pills in half.

U.S. hospitals are reporting an rise in emergency room patients, according to the American Hospital Association. This includes a climb in uninsured patients with conditions that could have been treated elsewhere, and this is expected to increase.

Dr. Ted Epperly, a family physician at a Boise, Idaho, clinic for the poor, said office visits were down 20% in August, mostly in prenatal visits by pregnant women and checkups for chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, asthma and diabetes. ''The longer it goes and the more skipped visits, the greater the opportunity there will be for bad outcomes,'' Epperly said. ''It's not a matter of if. It's a matter of when.''