One More Reason Why Blackwell Has His Head Up His Ass

Study Says Individual Insurance Too Costly

Eighty-nine percent of health-coverage shoppers can't afford policies or are rejected.

By Lisa Girion, Times Staff Writer


Individual health insurance — often touted as an alternative to employer-based group coverage — may be an option for the healthiest and wealthiest. But a study due out today suggests that the poor and sick need not apply. The overwhelming majority — 89% — of working-age adults who shopped for health coverage in the individual market over the last three years were rejected for health reasons or found it too expensive, according to the study by the Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation that sponsors independent research on health and social issues…