Texas Hospitals, Small Business Leaders Urge
Legislature to Address Health Care Crisis
Cover the Uninsured Week being observed in Texas and nationally March 22-28

AUSTIN (March 24, 2009) – The Texas Hospital Association (THA) and the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) today urged Texas legislators to pass a series of bills aimed at making health care insurance more affordable and accessible for all Texans.

As part of “Cover the Uninsured Week” in Texas, THA also unveiled its current advertising campaign to raise awareness about the uninsured crisis, as well as the results of a recent public opinion poll, which found that an overwhelming majority of Texans believe health care coverage should be a top priority for state lawmakers even if Congress is also considering health care reforms.

Texas has the highest rate of uninsured in the country with one in four Texans – or more than 5.7 million people – lacking health insurance. 

 “This is a crisis that is hurting every man, woman and child in Texas,” said THA President/CEO Dan Stultz, M.D., FACP, FACHE.  “Many people without coverage are going without routine, preventive care. Those of us lucky enough to have coverage pay a higher premium as some of the costs for delivering care to the uninsured who do seek help are shifted to paying patients. Local taxpayers are also affected; we all pay higher taxes to support public hospitals, and patients may have to wait longer to receive care, especially in the hospital emergency room.”

The vast majority of uninsured Texans – 82 percent – come from working families. Employer-sponsored insurance decreased 5.5 percent in Texas from 2000 to 2004.

Providing health care coverage for employees is especially challenging for a small employer. In Texas, about 75 percent of all businesses are small companies, and only about a third of them can offer health insurance.

“Health care affordability and accessibility are the top priority for small business owners year after year,” said Lance Lively, legislative director for NFIB Texas. “They continue to pay an average of 18 percent more than their big business counterparts for the same coverage. This should be a key consideration for lawmakers.”

Darrin Forse, owner of Force Transportation, a small trucking business based in the Houston area, concurred. “It is imperative that small businesses be provided a cost-effective way to make health care coverage affordable and accessible to our employees,” he said.

THA is airing a 30-second television commercial about the problem this week in Austin, as well as ads on several legislative blogs and news Web sites. THA also created an eight-minute video to share with Texas legislators and the news media to help illustrate the magnitude of the problem. The video features the stories of small business owners, including Forse and Wanda Rohm, who owns a small printing company in San Antonio, as well as a mother whose adult child aged out of her group policy. A nurse/ hospital administrator shares the impact of the uninsured on health care providers. A version of the video is posted at www.GetTexasCovered.com.

“Finding a solution to this crisis is our highest priority at the Texas Hospital Association, and part of that means working to raise awareness,” Stultz said.

According to a recent public opinion poll of Texas voters, 45 percent of the respondents rated “making health insurance more affordable and accessible” as either the top or second most important issue. Moreover, 77 percent said health care should be a priority for the state, even if the federal government is taking action. The telephone survey of 801 voters was conducted for THA by Baselice & Associates, Inc. in January 2009 and has a margin of error of + 3.5 percent.

Stultz said he fears the uninsured crisis will continue to worsen during the current economic downturn. “People who have health coverage through their job fear losing it, and everyone is concerned about the affordability and accessibility of health care and health insurance in these volatile economic times,” he said.

Stultz also expressed concern for the number of people who lack access to routine, preventive care because of the lack of insurance coverage. “Thirty-five percent of respondents to our recent poll said they have delayed seeking medical treatment or put off preventive care and 28 percent have not filled or refilled a prescription because of their out-of-pocket costs,” he said. 
 
“Clearly, we have a problem on our hands, and something must be done – and it must be done now,” Stultz said.

See list of insurance coverage-related bills THA is supporting or visit www.GetTexasCovered.com for more information.

-30-

About Texas Hospital Association
Founded in 1930, the Texas Hospital Association is the leadership organization and principal advocate for the state’s hospitals and health care systems. Based in Austin, THA enhances its members’ abilities to improve accessibility, quality and cost-effectiveness of health care for all Texans. One of the largest hospital associations in the country, THA represents more than 85 percent of the state’s hospitals and health care systems, which employ some 340,000 health care professionals statewide. To learn more, visit www.tha.org.