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A research team from the University of Buffalo has compared outcomes among trauma patients by insurance status and race. The most significant, and perhaps most surprising, finding was that uninsured patients were more likely to succumb to their traumatic injuries than those patients with insurance. In fact, this difference existed, irrespective of the type of insurance, including Medicaid. Race was also an independent factor responsible for differences in outcomes.
Nearly 200,000 patients from 649 different facilities were followed after suffering injuries from auto accidents and gunshot wounds. Study data was extracted from the National Trauma Data Bank from the years 2001-05.
“Uninsured patients were more likely to succumb to their traumatic injuries than those patients with insurance, irrespective of the type of insurance, including Medicaid.”
The researchers noted that the insurance status of trauma patients is generally not known when initially treated in the emergency department (ED), and so the findings relating to the uninsured were, at first, surprising. However, it was also pointed out that “uninsured adult patients, in general, have a 25% greater mortality rate than insured adults for all medical conditions.”
Among the many possible factors influencing the mortality of the uninsured after suffering trauma were:
- potential delays in seeking any medical care
- language barriers
- fear of seeking care, especially in an ED setting
- increased risk-taking behaviors, including less likelihood of wearing seat belts
- greater likelihood of driving an older, less safe vehicle
The sum affect would be that the uninsured “have poorer health status in general, which would lessen their ability to survive a traumatic injury.” The study’s authors pointed out that “universal health coverage could change these statistics… for instance, there would be no need for patients to delay treatment with universal health coverage, and such coverage could improve the overall health status of injury victims and increase their survival rates.”
Source: Uninsured More Likely to Die from Trauma than Patients with Insurance, Study Finds, News Release, University of Buffalo, The State University of New York, June 11, 2010.
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