In fact, the better the economy gets the fewer people have health insurance. In June the Denver Post reported that the number of Coloradans who obtain medical insurance through their small business employers is at a four-year low. And our state s economy has been growing even faster than the overall national rate. Here s what s happening. The demand for workers goes up as the economy improves.
Unemployment falls and wages rise.
Family income increases, disqualifying folks from Medicaid, the Colorado Resident Insurance Program, the Child Health Insurance Program, and other public subsidies to healthcare for the working poor. Meanwhile, after a breather that lasted less than two years, healthcare costs are once again outracing the overall rate of inflation. Small businesses are reluctant to pay high insurance premiums for new hires, who are generally the least experienced, least valued, lowest paid people in the workforce. The working poor are too busy struggling to make ends meet to lobby for health insurance reform. And neither political party seems to have the stomach to address the plight of 35 million Americans without health insurance.