Lack of health insurance and financial worries about the cost of care contributed to as much as a six-hour delay in seeking emergency care for a heart attack, according to a first-of-its kind study published April 14 in the Journal of the American Medical Association. It’s the first study to link the impact of not having health insurance to patients’ decisions to delay emergency treatment during a heart attack. But perhaps most importantly, the study revealed even those with health insurance delayed emergency care, if they had financial concerns. The results could impact the continued debate about U.S. health care reform as affordability of care remains a challenge to patients, authors say. ‘Having private health care insurance did not guarantee use of health services that were essential for these patients, perhaps because they perceived them as unaffordable in the face of competing financial demands, says study senior author Paul S. Chan, M.D., MSc., cardiologist at Saint Luke’s Mid America Heart Institute, in Kansas, City, Mo. In the study, 49 percent of uninsured patients and 45 percent of insured patients with financial concerns delayed seeking care by more than six hours during a heart attack, compared with […]