SAVE

Written By: Katie Dean

The ongoing congressional debate over health care reform will eventually determine whether millions of young Americans continue to be financially crippled by a broken system.  While young people are not the widely-publicized victims of health care, our generation has been burdened disproportionately by the elusiveness of quality health care in this country.

Despite the youth health care crisis, young people are largely overlooked in the development of various health care proposals. One of the likely reasons for the lack of consideration of the 19-29 demographic is the absence of youth advocates in the health care narrative.  While Americans aged 50 and over can rely on the AARP to champion their interests, there exists no such group for the representation and defense of the health care needs of young Americans.

The irony of young people’s exclusion from the health care debate is that young adults between the ages of 19 and 29 are the most uninsured age group in the country and represent nearly one-third of all uninsured people.  Furthermore, the rising unemployment rate of this demographic, currently standing at 17.3%, puts young people at an even greater risk for a lack of health care benefits.

The economic recession has resulted in insufficient employment opportunities for young Americans, which, in turn, has greatly decreased the availability of employer-provided health insurance: Only 50% of Millennials receive health care through an employer, compared to 75% of people over 30.  Of the young Americans who have been affected by job loss, 46% have seen their health coverage disappear, but it is not only unemployed young adults who have seen a loss of benefits; 20% of young adults have been forced to take part-time jobs which typically do not offer employees health coverage.

In addition to facing the highest unemployment rates in the country, young people are also dealing with mounting debt from student loans, credit cards, and now, health care.  Over half of young adults have lost health care coverage at some point in the past five years, and during these lapses 35% of young adults have accrued substantial medical debt.  It is clear that our physical health and economic health are inextricably linked, so to tackle this crisis head-on, a group of over 20 leading youth organizations has come together to create the 80 Million Strong for Young American Jobs coalition.

The 80 Million Strong coalition is working to improve the precarious state of young Americans’ health care by proposing federal legislation that would create jobs for young people across all sectors, expand training programs for young people who want to work in the health care industry, and encourage young entrepreneurship.  Our coalition emphasizes the importance of dealing with the joint problems of youth unemployment and failing health insurance collectively, for neither of these issues may be resolved if the other is allowed to continue.

The economic future of the Millennial Generation is dependent upon health care reform that opens the door to affordable coverage for all Americans through a public health insurance option.  With the foundation of quality health coverage, young people will be free to enter the workforce with one fewer obstacle to long-term financial security.

Written By: Katie Dean

Crosspost with 80 Million Strong

The unemployment rate for young Americans aged 16-24 rose to 17.3% in May and now stands a staggering 7.9 points higher than the national average.  Young people in America are facing the highest unemployment rates of any demographic, while at the same time accruing, on average, $27,000 worth of student loans by college graduation.  And these numbers do not reflect the negative effects of growing credit card debt and a lack of health insurance that continue to plague young Americans.

The statistics are clear: young people have been affected disproportionately by the nation’s economic recession, and yet the American public is largely unaware of the plight of the youngest members of its workforce.

Media coverage of the national unemployment crisis is abundant, but it overlooks the economic woes of the Millennial Generation.  Less than a year ago the nation’s news outlets were clamoring for stories about this now seemingly forgotten age bracket; feel-good pieces about the increased level of youth participation in the presidential election were published daily, and it appeared as though the media, and consequentially, the public, finally respected the contributions of our generation to the political realm. 

However, once the Obama-mania of election season died down and America came out of its bliss-induced haze, the media refocused its attention on the problems ahead, namely the faltering economy.  Essentially absent from this coverage has been the Millennial Generation; in a few short months our age demographic went from being the subject of front page feature stories to the occasional, and almost certainly brief, acknowledgment in an article on some larger economic issue.

While there are some exceptions, the media attention being paid to young Americans is inarguably disproportionate to the burden the recession has put on this cohort.  It seems as though the media had use for young Americans when we provided inspirational material for human interest pieces, but now that we need publicity to ensure our financial future, too many news outlets have abandoned our cause.

Let me be clear, young Americans are certainly not the only group suffering in today’s abysmal job market.  I understand that unemployment is devastating for an adult who must support his or her entire family; however, young people have financial responsibilities to their families as well, and the face of today’s caretaker is not exclusively a middle-aged man.  We do not want to replace the current image of the unemployed and struggling, we simply wish to augment it to accurately reflect the current situation.

Increased media coverage of the economic hardships of young Americans is essential to the wellbeing of our economic futures.  In the absence of a strong media narrative, the challenges of uniting young people to play an active role in shaping our economic destinies may be too great.  While the inspirational spirit of our generation may be a good storyline, it is no more important than the reality that is our precarious economic outlook.  In fact, just as the media narrative of the fall election may have contributed in spreading inspiration, press coverage of the youth economic crisis may help spark action to improve it.