To give added emphasis to the message we're likely to hear tonight from President Obama, that we've talked healthcare reform to death and now is the time to act, comes a new Gallup survey showing that nearly 5 million adult Americans lost their health insurance since September.
Sam Stein reports on the survey.
[Sixteen] percent of Americans over the age of 18 are currently without health insurance. That number reflects what the survey's authors describe as a "small but measurable uptick in the percentage of uninsured adults."
Indeed, the average number of uninsured adults recorded by Gallup in 2008 was 14.8 percent. In September 2008, the monthly total recorded was at a yearly low of 13.9 percent.
While the difference in percentage may seem small, the aggregate number of additional uninsured is vast.
According to 2007 U.S. Census data, the population of those 18 years or older stood at 228,196,823. By using that figure, in September of 2008, the number of uninsured adults would have totaled approximately 31.7 million. Today, the figure stands at 36.5 million -- meaning that 4.8 million adults have, in less than a year, lost their insurance coverage.
That could strengthen Speaker Pelosi's willingness to have the House work through August recess to get the job done. The larger question is whether it'll be enough to light a fire under Max Baucus's ass.