Money Woes

Is the economic downturn making it hard for you to pay your medical bills? If so, you're not alone. A recent survey by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners found that 22% of Americans are cutting back on visits to their doctors because they can't afford to pay for them. Eleven percent said they had reduced the number of prescription drugs they take or have cut dosages of their medications to make them last longer. 'There's a lot of evidence that the more patients are required to pay more for their care, the more that they make economic decisions about what to get or what not,' Michael Potter, MD, of the California Academy of Family Physicians told the San Francisco Chronicle. 'While some of that may be perfectly reasonable and acceptable, what I worry about is people not getting care that is really essential for their health.'