Georgia Nursing January 2022

Page 4 • Georgia Nursing January, February, March 2022
A New Survey on Health Care Affordability Finds Georgians are
“Coming Up Short”
By Whitney Griggs, Policy Analyst
The high cost of medical
care has long been a concern
for Georgians and a frequent
topic of conversation among
policymakers and industry
leaders. Therefore, it’s no
surprise to learn that many
Georgians struggle to pay for
health care or worry about
their ability to pay for care
in the future. A new survey
conducted by Altarum’s
Healthcare Value Hub, in
consultation with Georgians for a Healthy Future, gives
surprising new data on exactly how much Georgians
struggle with the cost of healthcare.
The purpose of Altarum’s Consumer Healthcare
Experience State Survey (CHESS) is to provide
advocates, policymakers, and industry leaders with
a better understanding of consumers’ struggles with
health care costs, reveal the cost-drivers that need to
be addressed in Georgia, and provide support for
system changes and policy solutions to improve health
care affordability for consumers.
The Georgia CHESS revealed that almost seven
in ten (68%) respondents struggled with health
care affordability burdens in the past 12 months.
These burdens included being uninsured due to high
premium costs (48%), delaying or forgoing care due
to cost (58%), and struggling to pay medical bills
(50%). The survey also found that four in five (80%)
of respondents worried about affording care in the
future, especially care related to aging or medical
emergencies. Unsurprisingly, those with incomes
below $50,000 struggled the most to afford care.
However, health care cost challenges also affected
families higher up the income ladder, with over half
(56%) of residents with incomes of $100,000 or more
struggling to afford care. When people are forced to
delay or forgo health care due to cost, their conditions
often become much more difficult and expensive to
treat down the road. Additionally, taking on debt or
choosing between necessities to pay for care affects
individuals and family’s financial security and wellbeing
for years to come. The survey found strong,
bipartisan support for legislative action to address high
medical costs. These actions include expanding health
insurance options to make health insurance affordable
and accessible for everyone, making it easier to switch
plans if an insurer drops your provider, showing fair
prices for procedures, and requiring insurers to provide
up-front cost estimates to consumers. The results of the
Georgia CHESS demonstrate the need for policymakers
and stakeholders to address high costs across all areas
of health care – from coverage to care to prescription
drugs. Additionally, consumers need more protection
from high health care costs and robust, easy-tounderstand
tools to navigate the costs associated
with care. Lawmakers can apply the CHESS results to
their efforts in the 2022 legislative session, using the
information to pass laws that eliminate cost as a barrier
to care for Georgians, protect Georgians from rising
health care costs, and require system-level changes so
consumers can better tell what the actual cost of their
care will be.
wgriggs@healthyfuturega.org
More information and evidence: https://
healthyfuturega.org/2021/09/29/a-new-survey-onhealth-care-affordability-finds-georgians-are-comingup-short/
Advocacy Update
AMAZING
REMARKABLE
AWESOME
American Renal Associates
Our Staff Make the Difference!
Opportunities for dialysis nurses in
Augusta and Macon areas.
Email resume to Brittany Winter
at bwinter@americanrenal.com
Tim Davis
Sr. Director of Membership & Government Affairs
On Wednesday, December 8, 2021, Georgia Nurses Foundation Treasurer Dr.
Shawn Little spoke to the House Rural Development Council about the need for
more support for schools of nursing in order to grow Georgia’s new nurse pipeline.
In addition to some innovative ideas centered around how the state can invest in
schools of nursing, she also offered feedback relating to the recently proposed
Board of Nursing rule changes for schools of nursing and their potential impact.
You can watch the Rural Development Council meeting at https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=InTG499rTOo
Comments from Dr. Little begin at the 3hr and 10min mark.