Health Care Delayed or Denied for 17 Million People Since House Passage of Patients' Rights Legislation

Families USA Initiates Patients' Rights Tour to Rally Support for Legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Almost 17 million Americans have had their health care delayed or denied since the House of Representatives passed patients' rights legislation last October, said Ron Pollack, executive director of the national consumer organization Families USA, at a White House ceremony.

At the event, Families USA unveiled the "Patients' Rights Ticker," a large digital counter mounted atop an ambulance and showing the number of Americans aged 18-64 who had their health care delayed or denied because of problems with their health plans since the House passed the Norwood-Dingell patients' rights bill on October 7, 1999. The Norwood-Dingell bill is currently languishing in a House-Senate Conference Committee, and the Patients' Rights Ticker and ambulance will appear at rallies in a dozen states to garner support for the enactment of the legislation this year.

"Every week that passes without Congressional action, almost 350,000 people experience delays or denials of care because of problems with their health plans," Pollack said. "It's high time to pass patients' rights legislation this year so that we don't cause many millions of additional Americans to lose the health care they need."

The White House ceremony featured President Bill Clinton, American Medical Association CEO Dr. E. Ratcliffe Anderson, Jr., and Mr. Pollack. They each urged Congress to complete work on the Patients' Bill of Rights.

Families USA used the event to announce the launch of the Patients' Rights Tour 2000, a series of rallies in a dozen states to persuade Senators to vote for the Norwood-Dingell bill. Events featuring the ambulance and the Patients' Rights Ticker will begin next week, and the Tour will include rallies in Delaware, Michigan, Missouri, and Pennsylvania.

"We want to make sure Senators in those states understand that passing the Norwood-Dingell bill is in their constituents' best interests and the best interests of the country," Pollack said.

The Patients' Rights Ticker's calculations are based on findings of the Kaiser Family Foundation's National Survey on Consumer Experiences With Health Plans, released in June of this year. The Survey, conducted among Americans aged 18-64 who have health insurance other than Medicare, found that 13.4 percent of this group encountered problems last year with their health plans that resulted in a delay or denial of care. This amounts to 18.1 million Americans between ages 18 and 64. 

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Families USA is the national organization for health care consumers. It is nonprofit and nonpartisan and advocates for high-quality, affordable health care for all Americans.

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