Health Care Literacy (why understanding our roles is important)
Currently, less than a quarter of the English-speaking population understands the health care system. Most individuals are confused as they are asked to navigate the confusing world of health care. This confusion and inefficiency is costing the health care system billions of dollars- not to mention the emotional costs of an individual. We've posted some of the research and strategies of improving the health care literacy and understanding in the country- and why it is a such a critical element to getting a handle on the unsustainable costs we are experiencing today.
NEW Low Health Literacy; Implications for National Health Policy; Vernon, Trujillo, Rosenbaum, DeBuono; (This paper estimates the waste the United States spends unecessarily is somewhere between $1.6 billion and $3.0 billion annually. The costs to future generations exceeds $1 trillion. The paper puts a number to the problem- and its big) Posted 1-24-12
NEW Literacy of Older Adults in America; National Center for Education Statistics; US Department of Education; (Older adults learn different and their health literacy scores are lower than the rest of the population.) 1-24-12
NEW The Health Literacy of America's Adults; National Center For Education Statistics; US Department of Education; Sept. 2006; (This study provides the results from the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy. It includes the results of studying over 19,000 adults. Only 14% of the population scored as "Proficient." Almost 40% scored "Basic" or "Below Basic". The 40% equates to a C or D (or lower) on a test.) Posted 1-24-12
NEW Literacy and Health in America; Center for Global Assessment; Educational Testing Service; 2004; (Evaluates the health literacy scores of different demographic populations and presents implications on health outcomes, disparities, research, and the actions we may consider) Posted 1-24-12
NEW Health Literacy Implications of the Affordable Care Act; Center for Health Strategies; Commissioned by Institute of Medicine; November, 2008 (Some good background information on health literacy and a discussion of how the Affordable Care Act intends to address the problem) Posted 1-24-12
Healthy Literacy and America's Health Insurance Plans: Laying the Foundation and Beyond; America's Health Insurance Plans; October, 2011 (This report provides a summary of some of the health literacy activities in 27 different health care organizations to improve compliance and understanding; some interesting ideas); Posted 11-28-11
America's Health Literacy; Why We Need Accessible Health Information; USDHHS; (Providing some of the basics about health literacy and its impact on the cost of health care); Posted July 23, 2010
Health Literacy Fact Sheets; Center for Health Care Strategies; (More fundamentals and background of health literacy as a component of improving health care delivery in this country); Posted July 23, 2010
National Action Plan to Improve Health Literacy; May, 2010; DHHS (The national strategy to improve health literacy and understanding in the country); Posted July 23, 2010
Health Literacy; A Prescription to End Confusion; Institute of Medicine; 2004 (A pre-publication document but provides the outline of the need for cultural, educational, and health system involvement in improving the health literacy in the country) Posted July 23, 2010
Health Literacy; Center For Health Care Strategies; (Nine Fact Sheets Regarding the Impact "Health Literacy" Is Having On Our Health Care System)
