You pay for the Uninsured

For those of you who think that the uninsured are not your problem, this new study might make you think twice. If you don't think you should have to pay for "lazy people who can't afford health insurance", well it turns out you are. Most uninsured are working class people who's employers don't offer health insurance. The money comes from somewhere when they need care. Individuals and businesses end up paying for it with their private insurance. Wouldn't it be better if we worked out a different system????
Here's the report: Families USA Uninsured Report
Here's an excerpt:

"This study quantifies, for the first time, the dollar impact on private health insurance premiums when doctors and hospitals provide health care to uninsured people. In 2005, premium costs for family health insurance coverage provided by private employers will include an extra $922 in premiums due to the cost of care for the uninsured; premiums for individual coverage will cost an extra $341...

Without insurance to pay the tab, the uninsured struggle to pay as much as they can: More than one-third (35 percent) of the total cost of health care services provided to people without health insurance is paid out-of-pocket by the uninsured themselves...Through this study, we found that the remaining $43 billion is primarily paid by two sources: Roughly one-third is reimbursed by a number of government programs, and two-thirds is paid through higher premiums for people with health insurance."