The column below reflects the views of the author, and these opinions are neither endorsed nor supported by WisOpinion.com.
Wisconsin has a health care affordability problem. Yes, the cost of nearly everything everywhere has risen in the last several years, but the health care affordability gap is a unique problem for so many working residents in our state.
Expanding BadgerCare would close our health care affordability gap, allowing 90,000+ Wisconsin residents with lower incomes and their families to gain access to comprehensive and affordable health care coverage. New research into the state of our health care shows why the state Legislature needs to expand BadgerCare now more than ever.
Because our lawmakers have only partially expanded BadgerCare, limited income Wisconsinites can get health coverage, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they can afford the care when they get sick.
What does our affordability gap look like? A single adult in Wisconsin making $17,000 is still on the hook for the first $3,000 out of pocket costs for their health care. You simply can’t budget your way out of that. Too many people are taking on medical debt to get the care they need.
According to the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s (ACS CAN) May survey, nearly half of our nation’s cancer patients and survivors surveyed (47%) have had medical debt related to their cancer, and the plurality of those (49%) have carried over $5,000 in medical debt. Sixty-nine percent have carried this debt for more than a year and over a third (35%) have had medical debt related to their cancer for more than three years.
Of course, with our unique-to-Wisconsin affordability gap, those numbers are even more bleak at home. In Wisconsin, 7 in 10 voters (70%) report they or an immediate family member currently have or have had medical debt. That’s compared to 53% nationally—higher than any other state surveyed.
The ACS CAN survey also found that the health implications of carrying that medical debt are significant: those with cancer-related medical debt are three times more likely to be behind on recommended cancer screenings (18% vs 5%), 27% of those with cancer-related medical debt have gone without adequate food, and 25% have skipped or delayed care. Too many Wisconsinites avoid getting the cancer prevention and care they need.
The impacts of cancer-related medical debt are not felt equally and further deepen disparities. Black and Hispanic patients and survivors with medical debt are about twice as likely as White respondents to report being denied care due to their debt (13% and 14%, respectively). Black respondents are also more likely to report being contacted by collections agencies (66%) and to feel harassed by them (44%).
The affordability gap doesn’t just deepen health disparities along racial lines, it exacerbates the rural / urban divide. A new study by the Wisconsin Policy Forum finds that for multiple reasons, including lower rural incomes and fewer employers offering coverage, rural Wisconsinites are the most likely to benefit from BadgerCare expansion. Expanding BadgerCare would also help keep rural hospitals and clinics open, a literal lifeline for rural Wisconsinites.
Improving access to affordable health care coverage remains incredibly popular. Multiple polls from Marquette Law School and others show 7 in 10 Wisconsinites want to see BadgerCare expanded and 8 in 10 want our elected officials to take action to make health care more affordable.
The option to expand BadgerCare has been on the executive and legislative table for a decade. It would mean lower costs for premiums, deductibles and copays for limited income Wisconsin residents in every corner of the state. Expanding BadgerCare would make it easier and more affordable to detect, treat and survive a cancer diagnosis.
Yes, the health care affordability gap is a uniquely Wisconsin problem, but it is one we can fix. Until Wisconsin lawmakers do what 40 other states have done, our friends and neighbors will struggle to afford cancer care.
Phil O’Brien is a Milwaukee attorney and member of the national board of directors for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.
