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Report finds little faith in US healthcare system
Americans are deeply pessimistic about the country's healthcare system, according to a report released Tuesday by Deloitte.
The survey found negative attitudes at nearly every level. For example, despite lawmakers' frequent claims that the U.S. has the best healthcare system in the world, only 24 percent of Americans view it as even among the world's best systems.
Only 22 percent gave the system an "A" or "B" grade, compared with 36 percent who graded it with a "D" or "F." Roughly a third believe the system is worse now than it was five years ago. A majority believes that most healthcare spending is wasted.
Other surveys have consistently shown that the U.S. not only spends far more on healthcare than other industrialized countries, but also has a less healthy population.
The Deloitte report also found that many consumers have cut back on healthcare spending due to the weak economy. According to the survey, 25 percent of Americans said they decided not to see a doctor while they were sick or injured. And 19 percent said they skipped a treatment recommended by a doctor.
Unsurprisingly, cost pressures are most severe for the uninsured, who also use fewer healthcare services. Less than half of the uninsured population has a primary care physician, compared with 87 percent of insured consumers. More than one-third of people without a primary-care doctor say they can't afford primary care — up 11 percentage points from two years ago.
Supporters of expanded health coverage often argue that bringing uninsured patients into the system will ultimately drive down the number of people who don't seek care until they get sick — and who do so through costly and often unnecessary emergency-room visits.
According to the Deloitte report, only 20 percent of uninsured patients reported having an imaging test in the past year, compared with 43 percent of insured patients.
