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Profiles of the Uninsured
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Daniel: Eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance, But Waiting |
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Except for blindness in one eye, an inability to turn his neck, periodic numbness in his fingers and chronic back pain, Daniel is extraordinarily healthy. At age 61, with more than 40 years of construction work under his belt, he is thin, wiry, takes no medications, and can't even remember the last time he was sick. |
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Danville, Illinois, is a small city in the heart of the Rust Belt. Like residents of many traditional manufacturing cities, Danville's citizens have had to cope with new, often harsh economic realities in recent years. As large companies have laid off workers and moved more operations overseas, Danville has lost many of the jobs that, for years, sustained this blue collar community. |
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Lenny cannot quite believe how fast the bills piled up, or how quickly he went from being known as someone who has always worked and looked after his family to being someone who needs county assistance. |
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Sheva, a handsome 50-year-old woman with waist-long braided dark hair, could serve as a one-woman field test for how Medicaid enrollment supports low-income families, and how losing Medicaid affects those trying to hold down their minimum wage jobs despite dealing with chronic health problems. |
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Toni knows she should be under medical supervision for her borderline diabetes. All she has to do is look at her wheelchair-bound uncle to be reminded of the importance of monitoring chronic illnesses so that they don't turn into life-threatening disabilities. |
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On a rainy evening in Boston, Ryan's bicycle commute home from work led him to a path often traveled by American 20-somethings-taking jobs for the health insurance benefits they offer rather than for the career opportunities they may provide. |
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HOW THESE PROFILES WERE DEVELOPED
These profiles are drawn from interviews conducted in 2003 with 120
uninsured men and women in Idaho, Texas, Mississippi, Illinois, and
Massachusetts. Interviewees were contacted through local churches,
community organizations, friends and colleagues, at yard sales, bars and
libraries, at local pharmacies and grocery stores, via notices posted in
public places, and through additional contacts suggested by those
initially interviewed. Conversations covered matters directly related to
illness and medical care, as well as more general personal anecdotes,
family stories, political opinions, and observations about neighborhoods
and workplaces.
The majority of the interviewees are women, reflecting the fact that women
are more often responsible than men for the health of their families as
well as their own health. Interviewees were white, African American, and
Hispanic, ranging in age from 19 to 64. Interviews, all of which were tape
recorded, lasted one to two hours and sometimes were followed up by phone
calls or letters. Each interviewee received a $25 honorarium as a token of
appreciation for participating.
All profiles here are of real individuals; none is a composite of more
than one interviewee or has been otherwise factually modified. The names
of all interviewees have been changed, as have other identifying details,
to protect subjects' privacy. The images are not of the subjects or of the
locations mentioned in the profiles.
Funding for the fieldwork and tape transcriptions was provided by Harvard
Divinity School's Center for the Study of World Religions and Harvard
University's Interfaculty Program for Health Systems Improvement. This
research project was approved by Harvard University's Institutional Review
Board. All interviewees gave the researchers informed consent to
participate in this project.
Any opinions stated in these profiles are those of the authors, and not
necessarily those of the supporting research centers or Harvard University
and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Commonwealth Fund, its
Board of Directors, staff, or grantees. Please address comments on this
project to: Susan Sered, at susan@sered.name.
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Copyright © Global Action on Aging |
