Are health insurance and health care really different?

Here is an article that actually distinguishes health care from health insurance. And some very interesting results emerge.

Based on 722 responses to a recent survey of low-income Oregon families regarding barriers to health care:

“Families reported 3 major barriers: lack of insurance coverage, poor access to services, and unaffordable costs. Disproportionate reporting of these themes was most notable based on insurance status. A higher percentage of uninsured parents (87%) reported experiencing difficulties obtaining insurance coverage compared with 40% of those with insurance. Few of the uninsured expressed concerns about access to services or health care costs (19%). Access concerns were the most common among publicly insured families, and costs were more often mentioned by families with private insurance. Families made a clear distinction between insurance and access, and having one or both elements did not assure care. Our analyses uncovered a 3-part typology of barriers to health care for low-income families.”

[Me again] It appears that regular people make a clear distinction between insurance and health care access. In other words, the people who can least afford to consider their problem as some theoretical or academic issue, have the good sense to see insurance and health care access as two different factors. The survey also found “disproportionate reporting” based on insurance status (gee, surprise) and that concerns about access to health care or about health care costs arose more frequently from the insured respondents than from the uninsured. Now THAT is interesting. Why might the uninsured be less concerned with costs and access? If you are not asking that question - - well dang it, you should be. Maybe a subsequent survey will probe that finding.

The survey is reported here (registration required – try the link anyway, and read the whole article if you can).

UPDATE: Found a working link (no reg required).