page_title: Poverty and health in the United States
section_title: Health care effects
hierarchical_section_title: Poverty and health in the United States / Health care effects
caption_attribution_description: Pro and anti healthcare protesters vie for space in front of televison camera. Demonstration for health care in front of the Hale Boggs Federal Building, Poydras Street, New Orleans
context_page_description: As of 2017, 12.3% of Americans were considered in poverty, according to the official poverty measure. People who are in poverty have different health risks than those who are not considered in poverty, as well as different outcomes associated with those risks. People who are in poverty grapple with varying outcomes in physical health, mental health, and access to healthcare. Examining divergences in health between those above and below the poverty line gives insight into conditions for those who live in poverty.
context_section_description: Between 1987 and 2005, the number of people without health insurance in the United States rose from just over 30 million, to 46.6 million. At that time, 8.5% of people belonging to households that made over $75,000 annually were uninsured. For families earning $25,000 or less, that percentage rose to 24.4% uninsured. This figure exhibits how lack of access to care via health insurance disproportionately affects those in poverty.
  Despite the cost of healthcare being an obstacle for those with relatively low incomes, research suggests that insurance coverage will not dramatically change outcomes related to physical health.  Access to Medicaid for low-income adults aided in diagnosis of metabolic disease, saw a reduction in diagnosis of mental health disorders, and reduced incurrence of “catastrophic medical costs” by patients dramatically. While these positive effects were observed, outcomes for heart disease, diabetes, and other physical health characteristics were not meaningfully improved. It has been posited that one year, the duration of the study, is an insufficient length to fully observe the divergent health outcomes that would be characteristic of an experiment with a lengthier time-table.
caption: Demonstrators rallying for healthcare reform.
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