GOP Rep. Contradicts Romney, Says Uninsured Do Die From Lack Of Coverage
Last week, Mitt Romney justified his desire to repeal Obamacare by arguing that we dont have people who die because they dont have insurance. And so on Monday, ThinkProgress spoke with Tea Party freshman Rep. Joe Heck (R-NV), a former emergency medicine doctor, at a candidate forum and asked him whether Romneys comments jibe with his past experience. Heck took issue with Romneys assertion that emergency room care for individuals without health insurance is a real solution. Ive seen people presented later in the course of their disease because they didnt health insurance, Heck said. At that point, its certainly much more difficult for them and its much more costly to the system:
KEYES: Youre a doctor. Mitt Romney took a little heat the other day for saying that there arent any folks in the United States who have died because they dont have health insurance. Is that something you agree with in your experience? What have you seen personally?
HECK: Ive seen people presented later in the course of their disease because they didnt health insurance. So they put off getting help until theyre far along and then its certainly much more difficult for them and its much more costly to the system.
Hecks two-fold point that individuals without health insurance put off getting care, and that delayed treatment in the hospital or elsewhere ends up costing everyone more is one of the overarching reasons why lawmakers passed Obamacare. In addition to the 45,000 Americans who die every year one person every 12 minutes because they dont have insurance, 50 million Americans are unable to receive proper care because they lack coverage.
audio at link
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/10/17/1023151/joe-heck-romney-insurance/