Health Insurance Costs Rise Faster(36%) Than Wages (12%- 2000 to 2004)

[papau]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&ncid=578&e=5&u=/nm/20040928/ts_nm/health_costs_dc

Health Insurance Costs Rise Faster(36%) Than Wages (12%- 2000 to 2004)
(nonpartisan Families USA used data compiled and analyzed by The Lewin Group from the U.S. Census Bureau, the Department of Labor, and the Department of Health and Human Services)


By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Health insurance premiums for workers are rising around three times faster than their wages, and health costs eat up a quarter of earnings for more than 14 million Americans, according to a survey on Tuesday.

While benefits are being cut, health insurance premiums are rising, the report from the nonprofit Families USA found.

"Working families were squeezed by runaway health care costs over the past four years," said Families USA executive director Ron Pollack.

"As a result, workers are paying much more in premiums but are receiving less health coverage, wages are being depressed; and millions of people have lost health coverage entirely." <snip>

Families USA said it found 85.2 million people (one out of every three Americans under 65 years of age) went without health insurance for some time during 2003 and 2004. <snip>

[RobertSeattle]

1. GOP Response: Don't get sick

"The GOP has a simple common sense plan for rising health care costs - don't get sick"

/Sarcasm

[BlueJazz]

2. Ha!...No problem.

I'm sure the Republicans will come up with another Bird-Brain proposal
to "Fix" the Problem. Every time the facts start showing a rise in costs or an escalation of non-insured people, the Repugs drag out some bullshit scheme to set everything right....and the result will be the same.

The Repugs remind me of some poor bastard pulling his 77 Yugo with a blown engine into a Automotive shop and being informed that:
"Oh..not to worry, we'll put a new set of spark-plugs in her..."

[madrchsod]

3. wages went up 12%?

where? what industry increased wages by 3% a year? interesting