MORE UNDERINSURED THAN WE THOUGHT

A widely used estimate in the health care debate that 20 million Americans have too little insurance to cover major illness turns out to be low, according to a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The report finds that 29 million people are now underinsured because their private insurance plans don't protect them from unusually large out-of-pocket expenses. What's the reason for the nearly 50% increase in the underinsured? Skyrocketing costs for catastrophic illnesses.