The Commonwealth Fund, a New York based health care policy foundation, recently published their report on health insurance in the U.S. The report shows the number of middle income Americans without health insurance, for at least part of 2005, is staggering. It rose to 41% which is a significant increase during the past few years. For Americans earning less than $20,000 a year, the number of individuals without health insurance is a staggering 53%.

Many employers continue to discontinue health insurance for their employees or offer them unaffordable health insurance plans. After World War II, health insurance became a benefit of employment with employers paying most, if not all, of the premium. Because of the exhorbitant increase in health care costs, this is no longer the norm.

Nearly half of the people surveyed for this report said they had medical debt or bill problems. Nearly two thirds of the adults with problems paying medical bills said they had health insurance when they incurred the debt.

Uninsured individuals with chronic health problems, such as asthma or diabetes mellitus, skip their medications regularly because the medication is too expensive. Such individuals are more likely to use an emergency room for health care, compared to an individual with health insurance.