The Eagle (Reading, PA), June 1, 2008

Letters from readers

Bogus figures

Editor:

It has been stated by many politicians that 47 million Americans do not have health insurance. This number is bogus.

According to Sally C. Pipes, president and chief executive officer of the Pacific Research Institute, the number was generated by the U.S. Census Bureau, which uses flawed methods to collect its data.

Of the 47 million, Pipes said, 20 million are illegal immigrants, 14 million are eligible for public programs such as Medicaid but did not enroll and 10 million have household incomes greater than $75,000 and chose not to buy health insurance. Doing the math, the 47 million shrinks to about 13 million. Given the U.S. population of approximately 306 million, we have approximately 4.2 percent of the folks in the country who do not have health insurance. The current U.S. health-care system can be adjusted to accommodate that 4.2 percent of the population without involving a government system of socialized medicine.

Dr. Christopher J. Beetel
Wyornissing