“King County is committed to helping those in need of a health care safety net, but it’s unfortunate that the lack of a national health care policy has created this crisis,” said Phillips after today’s briefing in the Council’s Committee-of-the-Whole. “People who don’t have access to medical care eventually will need medical assistance, and that help usually comes in the form of an emergency visit to Harborview Medical Center, King County’s public hospital. In the end, that means prices go up for those who can afford to pay, and the price of health care stretches further out of reach.”

Councilmembers received two separate briefings regarding health care for the uninsured in King County. Dorothy Teeter, Interim Director and Health Officer for Public Health—Seattle & King County, told Councilmembers the percentage of uninsured adults in King County is at its highest level since 1991—approximately 15 percent of county residents 18 to 64 years old lack health insurance. There has also been an increase in the number of young people under 18 without health insurance. Members also heard from two Harborview Medical Center executives, Executive Director David Jaffe and Chief Operating Officer Johnese Spisso, on the growing number of patients coming to Harborview with little or no health insurance. Harborview is owned by King County and operated by the University of Washington.

“What we learned today is that Harborview, the state’s only level-one trauma center, is also the state’s largest charity hospital,” said Phillips. “We are proud to have a world class medical center which provides quality care that is equally accessible to the rich and the indigent. But the rate of increase in patients who cannot afford to pay is alarming. Harborview’s cost of delivering charity care nearly doubled between 2003 and 2004, and that trend is not sustainable.”