Texas has the highest share of uninsured residents of any state, with nearly 18% of people lacking health coverage, and many are unable to take paid sick leave from work.
Experts say that makes it harder to contain an outbreak.
For Christian Gutierrez, preparing for a coronavirus outbreak is as much a financial consideration as it is a health one.
Public health experts say the state’s uniquely large uninsured population is complicating efforts to contain the disease because financial constraints could prevent millions of people from seeing doctors to get tested or treated — or could make it difficult for them to stay home from work even if they feel ill.
With the number of known cases of coronavirus infection in the U.S. surpassing 500 this weekend, a growing chorus of experts is warning about the vulnerability of millions of Americans who lack health care and are unable to take paid sick time off of work.
Texas, where Republican leaders have for years opposed expanding state-funded health insurance coverage to the poor, is home to a disproportionate share of them.
“One of the greatest challenges ahead is to make sure that the burdens of COVID-19, and our response measures, do not fall unfairly on people in society who are vulnerable because of their economic, social, or health status,” nearly 800 scientists, doctors and lawyers recently wrote in an open letter to the Trump administration.