Medical woes cause half of personal bankruptcies, and insurance is no protection, a Harvard study shows.
By Associated Press
Published February 2, 2005
BOSTON - Costly illnesses trigger about half of personal bankruptcies, and health insurance offers no protection against ending up penniless, according to findings from a Harvard University study to be released Wednesday.
Researchers from Harvard's law and medical schools said the findings underscore the inadequacy of many private insurance plans that offer worst-case catastrophic coverage, but little financial security for less severe illnesses.
"Unless you're Bill Gates, you're just one serious illness away from bankruptcy," said Dr. David Himmelstein, the study's lead author and an associate professor of medicine. "Most of the medically bankrupt were average Americans who happened to get sick."
The study, to be published online today by the journal Health Affairs, distributed quest...
life, from my point of view :)