NEWS BRIEFS: Virus could impact uninsured unevenly, experts say

By Lindsay Street, Statehouse correspondent  | One in 10 South Carolinians are without health insurance as the state runs into a growing crisis with the coronavirus.

Cases of the coronavirus are reported at 81 as of Thursday. As many as 12 percent of reported cases could result in hospitalization, according to the Centers for Disease Control. 

The uninsured could face life-altering debt if hospitalized, and they could unknowingly spread the disease if they continue to work and do not seek medical care due to finances, Palmetto Project Director of Programs Shelli Quenga said.

At the end of 2019, the state’s uninsured were tabulated at 522,000.

The Kaiser Family Foundation released a fact sheet this week on how the virus could affect the uninsured population. The report found:

• Many uninsured work in jobs that puts them face-to-face with the public and could increase their exposure rates;
• Construction workers, restaurant workers, janitors and other similar sectors were most at risk of not being insured;
• Financial consequences are severe for uninsured workers to take time off of work;
• The uninsured may forego testing due to expense or not having a regular care doctor; and,
• Any hospitalization bill would likely financially cripple them. 

What we know right now is people can get tested and they don’t have to worry about testing. The problem is if you test positive and if you already have a compromising health situation … you don’t have any access to treatment,” Quenga said. 

Many uninsured in South Carolina have a health condition that could make a COVID-19 diagnosis deadly: asthma, high blood pressure or diabetes, she said. 

“The potential for a downward spiral is very high when you have a lot of uninsured people, a lot of people who have existing diagnoses that are unknown.” 

For those seeking coverage and have seen a change in their employment, South Carolina has workforce requirements authorized for its Medicaid benefits for people with low or no income, but those requirements have not been implemented yet, Quenga said. 

To help streamline Medicaid applications, the federal government has waived eligibility renewals for those currently in the program, she said.

The Palmetto Project is offering updates on coronavirus and help. Text “Palmetto” to 565-12. 

In other state news:

McMaster invokes emergency powers. After banning eat-in dining this week in response to the coronavirus epidemic, Gov. Henry McMaster invoked an executive order Thursday  that called on his emergency powers, including the ability to ban small groups from convening. That wasn’t the purpose of the order, which was to send non-essential state employees home, mandate public colleges finish the semester through online instruction, allow unemployment claims to be expedited, suspend of unemployment insurance payments for employers until June 1, and suspend of certificate of need regulations needed for building of medical facilities. Read the order here (the powers are under the “whereas” sections). 

DHEC gets $45 million. The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control will get an additional $45 million to help with testing and response to the coronavirus pandemic. McMaster signed the bill into law Thursday after it unanimously passed the House. After the House vote, which took place with all members physically distant and some in the balcony, House Speaker Jay Lucas said they won’t return to the chamber for at least two weeks.

Former governor diagnosed with COVID-19. Former GOP Gov. David Beasley is one of the state’s 81 cases of coronavirus. In a letter to the Italy-based humanitarian agency World Food Programme that he leads, he said his symptoms are “relatively light.” He said they are working to trace his contacts after a recent trip to Canada, and that he will work from his home in Darlington County. He served as governor 1995 to 1999. 

Initial OK given to Santee Cooper settlement. Former state Supreme Court Chief Justice Judge Jean Toal, acting as a special judge, has given initial approval this week to a $520 million settlement plan in a lawsuit against state-owned utility Santee Cooper. The settlement would refund the money to about two million electric customers after their rates were increased to cover costs at the unfinished nuclear power plant. The settlement is expected to receive final approval this summer. Read more.

Local elections postponed. McMaster and the S.C. Election Commission announced this week all elections scheduled for March and April will be rescheduled for after May 1, though no specific date has been announced yet. Candidate filing for the month continues, however, and will close at noon March 30.  See which elections are impacted here. 

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