The Facts

Quality health care that once seemed reliable is quickly being priced out of reach for millions of hardworking, taxpaying Americans. The health care crisis affects us all regardless of age, race or employment. Nearly 47 million Americans do not have health insurance coverage. That's 15% of the population; with working families making up 80% of the uninsured. And that number doesn't even scratch the surface of the number of Americans who are underinsured in this country.

South Carolina Health Statistics

  • There are 670,000 uninsured South Carolina residents who can't afford any health coverage, including nearly 100,000 children
  • 80% of non-elderly uninsured people in South Carolina work full or part time
  • From 2000 to 2006, family health insurance premiums for working people in South Carolina have increased by 81.7% while median wages have increased by only 8.2%
  • The cost of caring for South Carolina's uninsured population will rise to more than $849 million by 2010

Special Focus: Health Disparities in South Carolina

Common illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers affect and kill African-Americans in South Carolina at a higher rate than white people in the state.   The causes for health disparities in South Carolina and across the country stem from a variety of factors including, but not limited to:

• Lower income among minorities which often results in less regular access to health care and limited ability to manage personal health for many people.
• Community environment that limits the availability of clean air, healthy food, opportunities for exercise, and health services contributes to poorer health among minority populations who tend to live in poorer areas.
• Problems with health care delivery such as limited access to affordable health insurance in some geographies; language and cultural barriers that some minority individuals face while interacting with health care providers; and bias or stereotyping that may impact the providers’ treatment of minority patients.

A closer look at healthcare disparities in South Carolina*:

  • Heart Disease:  African-Americans were 1.3 times more likely to die from heart disease than whites.
  • Strokes: African-Americans suffer strokes at a higher rate, 3.8%, compared with whites, 2.7%.
  • Breast Cancer:  African-American women were more 1.5 times more likely to die of breast cancer than white women.
  • Prostate Cancer:  African-American men are 2.7 times more likely to die from prostate cancer than white men in South Carolina.
  • Diabetes:  African-Americans are 2.5 times more likely to die from diabetes than whites.
  • Flu & Pneumonia:  Together, flu and pneumonia are the seventh leading cause of death among South Carolina seniors.  Seniors who do not have access to health services including the flu and pneumonia shots, are at higher risk for developing serious cases of these illnesses which can lead to death.  In 2005, only 48.4% of African-Americans were vaccinated against the flu in South Carolina, versus 65.4% of whites.

* Data from South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC)’s 2007 report Healthy People Living in Healthy Communities.

Fighting for Health Care Reform in South Carolina

This year, South Carolina for Health Care has united over 13,000 Health Care Voters in the Palmetto State to make comprehensive health care reform a top priority for all candidates, especially presidential contenders. For the past several months, Health Care Voters have been attending presidential candidate events across the state in their signature purple “I’m a Health Care Voter” t-shirts, urging candidates of both parties to release comprehensive health care reform plans that ensure quality, affordable health care for every man, woman and child in America.

Read the Health Care Resolution being introduced in the State House.