BISMARCK -- When it comes to health care, the status quo is failing American families; too many insurance company denials, suffocating costs and too many uninsured. But if Congress fails to enact reform, things won't just stay the same -- they'll get worse. And a recent report released by the Urban Institute underscores just how much worse things will get for our state.
The Urban Institute report indicates that unless we enact changes now, those who manage to keep their coverage will pay an even heftier price over the next 10 years, with individual and family spending on health care increasing by 31.2 percent in North Dakota by 2019. Nationally, as many as 57 million Americans could find themselves uninsured. And this, according to the report, is the best case scenario. In North Dakota alone, delaying health care reform would hit our communities hard, with the estimated number of uninsured in our state skyrocketing to 74,000 or 14.2 percent of our population.
Though working families would no doubt be among those most impacted by a failure to enact reform, even in the best case, North Dakota businesses would see their premiums balloon by 55.8 percent.
It's hard to believe we're talking about the wealthiest country in the world.
But we can't settle for just any reform. We have to enact genuine reform that holds down costs and keeps insurance companies honest. As it stands, insurance companies have a stranglehold on our health care system, driving up costs and coming between middle-class Americans and the care they need.
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Polls show that the majority of Americans and close to 75 percent of doctors favor including a public health insurance option in reform. By injecting competition, a robust public option is the best way to control costs and guarantee quality health care.
When it comes to reform, employers have a part to play, too. It's only right that employers pay their fair share by providing health coverage to employees or paying a meaningful fee into the system.
In recent months, we've seen a rising tide of anger directed at insurance companies, fueled in large part by their own worst practices.
For all of those who have been denied coverage or refused care, it's not just about the money -- it's a matter of life and death.
In response, people in North Dakota and across the country are raising their voices to demand that insurance companies renounce these worst practices.
Perhaps even more important, it is immoral for insurance companies to deny or drop coverage because pre-existing medical conditions. In every state, rising numbers of Americans are unable to access the coverage they need on the basis of pre-existing conditions. Every day, more and more of these stories come to light, with insurance companies using "conditions" such as pregnancy and even acne to justify withholding coverage. Many insurance companies even have policies that reward employees who deny care or reject claims.
When it comes to enacting health care reform, it's clear that failure is simply not an option. Doing nothing now will cost us more down the road. The longer Congress waits to pass reform, the worse the situation gets for everyone -- North Dakota's middle-class families, employers and our economy.
It's time for Congress to act and act swiftly. The stark reality is that we literally can't afford to wait.
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Kemnitz is president of the North Dakota AFL-CIO.
