This column by Bob Herbert column by Bob Herbert in the NY Times got me thinking about the relationship between health insurance and what physicians write on death certificates. Does lack of health insurance increase the risk of death?
This letter was not published, but 2 by others took a different approach.
November 3, 2007
To the Editor:
Re “Worsening the Odds” (Op-Ed, Nov 3): Bob Herbert describes the unfortunate case of a 45 year old medically uninsured craftsman with progressive headaches who died of metastatic cancer to the brain. He suggests that lack of health insurance contributed to the cause of death.
At our inner-city community health center, 70% of the adults we serve lack health insurance. We commonly see preventable complications of disease.
In Illinois, physicians must enter the official cause of death on the death certificate. On the following two lines physicians may choose to add that the death was “Due to or as a consequence of …” Perhaps we should routinely write “lack of health insurance” or “inability to obtain preventive care” on these lines. By doing so, the role played by this important factor will become an official part of the public record.
No comments:
Post a Comment