Health care costs hit hard in Newark

The health care crisis is a national issue. But some cities are feeling it more than others.

According to a 13-city report released Monday by Families USA, health care costs are beginning to exceed what many city workers earn – thus lessening health care coverage plans. So while providing health care for the uninsured has been a problem, this is a whole new animal.

The closing of two acute-care hospitals have put a strain on many of the other facilities in the city. Those closed hospitals – Columbus and Saint James – provided dental, pediatrics and infectious disease care, among other services. Said Maria Vizcarrondo, director of the city's Department of Child and Family Well-Being, “We’re very stretched.”

Vizcarrondo believes the answer could lie in creating more health care facilities for the uninsured and underinsured. This would tale the strain off of those clinics that cannot care for all of those with little or no health care.

Families USA also said raising eligibility levels for Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program will also help. The whole report is available at familiesusa.org.

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