Alabama Health Insurance
How healthy is living in Alabama?
Alabama held steady in the UnitedHealth Foundation's 2007 survey of the healthiest states to live in, once again coming in at number 45.
Out of the 20 areas the Foundation used to rank quality of health care, Alabama made it into the top ten in a single category -- it ranked number 5 in quantity of binge drinking.
The state was in the bottom ten in more than half of the categories measured:
- Smoking -- 41st
- Obesity -- 48th -- only two states with heavier populations
- High school graduates -- 46th -- only 65 percent of ninth graders evenutally graduate
- Preventable hospitalizations -- 44th
- Poor mental health days -- 46th
- Poor physical health days -- 46th
- Infant mortality -- 46th
- cardiovascular deaths -- 47th
- Cancer deaths -- 40th
- Premature death -- 48th
- Number of primary care physicians -- 41st
Some good news among the bad:
- The percentage of children living in poverty shrank from 24.7 percent to 18.8 percent from 2006 to 2007. This raised Alabama's rank from 47th all the way up to 35th.
- The violent crime rate plummeted between 1990 and 2007, from 559 to 425 offenses per 100,000 population. This bettered Alabama's rank among all states from 36th to 27th.
The study also concluded that Alabama's overall healthiness should improve over time, given some of the changes in determinants.
See the United Health Foundation's latest findings on Alabama.
Does Alabama have a risk pool for the uninsurable?
Alabama Health Insurance Plan
Toll-free 1-800-513-1384 or (334) 353-8924
Risk pools are state-sponsored programs to help people with a history of medical problems in their family to purchase coverage. These pools are for people who can afford to buy health insurance, but are not able to get underwritten in the private market because of a pre-existing health condition. These programs can vary significantly from state-to-state in price, benefits and number of people served. Often insurance companies doing business in the state are required to contribute to the poolto keep it in the black. In the best cases they allow people to be able to switch jobs or become self-employed without the fear of losing their health insurance coverage. Find more on risk pools here.
Cover The Uninsured's guide on finding health insurance in Alabama
Cover The Uninsured is a national effort to highlight the fact that too many Americans are living without health insurance and to demand solutions from our nation's leaders. Read more information on its efforts. It is a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
- Cover The Uninsured's facts on the uninsured in Alabama.
- Its guide on how to find health insurance in Alabama.
- Materiales En Español -- Guías para encontrar cobertura de seguro de salud.
Georgetown University's Guide to Health Insurance in Alabama
Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute has researched and written state-by-state guides for finding and keeping health insurance. It updates these guides as federal and state policies change. A number of non-profit organizations contribute to funding its research. Find more on the Health Policy Institute.
News headlines on Alabama health insurance
Find the most recent headlines on health insurance in Alabama at Google News or Yahoo News.
Want single-payer health care? Concerned about the uninsured?
Contact your elected officials about health care issues
Contact your federal officials. Phone calls are best. Faxes are good, too. Since 9-11 postal mail creates long delays, and many members of Congress simply do not take e-mail seriously -- however, since e-mail is so easy it doesn't hurt to do that, too. Members of the Senate and Congress will usually ignore any correspondence that is not from their district, so its not desirable to blanket e-mail them (this type of abuse is why many do not view it favorably). The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a guide on how to contact your elected officials, including a valuable list of dos and dont's.
- Contact the White House
Phone: toll free 1-800-671-7887 (ask for the Comment Line)
FAX: 1 202-456-2461 (fax)
E-mail:comments@whitehouse.gov
- Find contact information on your U.S. Representative
Locate by using your ZIP Code
Or if you know who your representative is, simply call the Capitol Switchboard toll-free at 1-800-962-3524
- Senator Jeff Sessions
PHONE: 202-224-4124 (DC office)
FAX: not available (DC office)
State offices
Contact by E-mail
- Senator Richard Shelby
PHONE: 202-224-5744 (DC office)
FAX: 202-224-3416 (DC office)
State offices
Contact by E-mail
- Alabama Governor Bob Riley
600 Dexter Avenue
Montgomery, Alabama 36130
PHONE: 334-242-7100
FAX: 334-353-0004
Contact by e-mail
- Contact your Alabama State Senator and State Representative
USNews health insurance rankings for Alabama
US News does an annual ranking of what it considers the best health insurance plans in each state. Visit its reports on various health insurance or medical insurance plans being offered in Alabama.
Official State Goverment Sites with Alabama Health Insurance Information
Alabama Department of Insurance, consumer page -- provides regulation of the insuance industry to provide consumer protection and help maintain market stability.
All Kids -- the state's SCHIP program to provide low-cost, comprehensive health insurance for children 18 years and younger.
Alabama Department of Senior Services -- Medicare resources (state health insurance assistance program) and more for Alabama's older population.
Alabama Medicaid Agency -- The state/federal program that pays for medical and long-term care services for low-income pregnant women, children, certain people on Medicare, disabled individuals and nursing home residents -- has income and other requirements.
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