Healthcare In Crisis: N.E. lags in healthcare benefits, agency says

New England lags the nation when it comes to businesses offering their workers healthcare benefits, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In New England, 54 percent of establishments offer medical care benefits to their employees, compared with 60 percent nationwide, said the bureau, part of the US Department of Labor.

Similarly, 61 percent of workers nationwide had access to retirement benefits, compared with 57 percent of New England workers, the bureau said.

New Englanders pay more for their healthcare benefits.

For single-coverage plans in New England, the average flat monthly employee contribution was $96.82, the highest amount for any of the nine regions of the country, the bureau said; nationwide, the average contribution was $81.37.

Statistics Collection

80 percent of the hospital closures nationwide occured in states that didn’t expand Medicaid. 2019
About 75,000 patients with hospital-related infections died in 2011.
A recent study conducted by the Kresge Foundation and published in Health Affairs found that treating children who are exposed to air pollution, toxic chemicals and other pollutants costs a staggering $76.6 billion dollars a year. The study also found that children with existing allergies to common airborne allergens are even more vulnerable to chemical pollutants than others.
About 27.8 million people without coverage are working, either part or full time.
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rising costs and deteriorating coverage cause more than one-in-four (28 percent) to go without needed care because they can't afford it.
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At the heart of the shortage is the difference between typical reimbursements for primary care doctors and specialists. The former can expect to earn $160,000 a year, according to national data, while obstetrician/ gynecologists earn an average $230,000 and dermatologists $300,000.

Healthcare In Crisis

Friday, September 28, 2007

N.E. lags in healthcare benefits, agency says

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