An uninsured child born in the U.S. every minute!

[WhereThereIsFire]

I just read an article that had a simple one line in it stating "in the U.S. an uninsured child is born every minute." The writer cited no source for this "fact" but if it is true ... how horrible is that? Apparently this administration has no conflict with insisting that every scrap of fetal tissue come to term, but once the head pops out of the birth canal ... they could care less about assuring it gets quality health care.

Not that I am naive', I've been aware of that latter portion for a very long time ... the part about an uninsured child born every minute was just a bit mind-boggling!

:grr:

[Stand and Fight]

1. Post a link please...

And it's "uninsured," not "unisured." :evilgrin:

I'd be happy to discuss this with a link -- plus it's a great counter to the Right-Wingers I work with...

[WhereThereIsFire]

3. Thanks for catching typo ... it's been updated ... also ...

no link available. I didn't read this online and it was among a large stack of printouts on my desk this AM. That's why I asked if anyone had stats on it, to verify!

O8)

[MannyGoldstein]

5. Did The Math - Looks Correct

25.7% of the US is under 18. We have about 300,000,000 people, thus 77,000,000 under 18.
One birth per minute = 60 * 24 * 365 = 525,600 per year
525,600 per year * 18 years = 9,460,800 uninsured under 18
If that number of uninsured is correct, then 12.3% of children are uninsured
Based on http://blueworksbetter.com/InsuranceCoverageChildren), this looks about right.

QED

[MannyGoldstein]

2. Perhaps That's Why We're 43rd in Infant Mortality - Worse Than Cuba

(I actually have built a web site that tracks this kind of stuff)

http://blueworksbetter.com/InfantMortalityUSvsWorld

[WhereThereIsFire]

4. Thanks for the link ...

I visited it just now and can't find the exact data that would show "1 uninsured child born per minute" ... so still wondering where the author got that stat. I do think it is likely true or close to truth.

Certainly many, many employed adults have no health insurance and that would translate to their children being ineligible for any insurance too.

[MountainLaurel]

6. Lack of prenatal medical visits are a huge factor

Because people not getting prenatal attention are more likely to smoke and drink, not be aware of the importance of nutrition, not be monitored for gestational diabetes and other pregnancy-related problems, etc. Unfortunately, uninsured people and the poor are also more likely to be exposed to environmental toxins or have stressors in their lives that cause harm to the fetus. And after the birth, they might be less likely to have the parenting knowledge and support necessary (e.g., thinking it's OK to feed a 2-month old Coke, not breastfeeding, not having someone to turn to when they're at the end of their rope and end up hurting the baby, etc.) to raise a child. And then there are myriad other reasons related to poverty that kill American babies: We've had a couple cases in our area where a family's electric had been cut off, the family was using candles as lighting, and one caught fire in the middle of the night, and the infant died from smoke inhalation.

[SoCalDem]

8. Pregnant women have lives to live, and OB/GYNs do not work for free

If you are a relatively lowpaid/poor woman (married or NOT) you are likely to have a deadend job or two, and do not have insurance. Here's your choice..Go to a "free clinc" and lose a day's pay (because you will be sitting there for HOURS) or maybe even lose the job, because you will be missing some work.

Lots of young women skip prenatal care because they don;t have the money or the time to spare and they roll the dice, thinking that since childbirth's normal, they'll be ok..and when the time comes and they are in labor, they WILL get medical care and won;t have to wait long because they will end up in an ER, in active labor.

and women who have had previous children, "know" they can deliver, because they have done it before, so they might skip the prenatal care too..

It's risky, but poor and uninsured people take risks every day of their lives..

[Benhurst]

7. And with Alito on board, we can get those numbers way up! NT