Health literacy deemed imperative
Employee Benefit News, August, 2004 by Leah Carlson
Before employees can become better health care consumers, they need to know a lot more about health care itself, a government study group has found.
Health illiteracy can lead to increased hospitalization and use of emergency services, as well as billions of dollars of avoidable health care costs, according to an April 8 report from the Institute of Medicine's committee on health literacy. Yet at least 90 million Americans have difficulty understanding and using health care information, the researchers warn.
"Health literacy is fundamental to quality care," notes committee chair David Kindig. "The public's ability to understand and make informed decisions about their health is a frequently ignored problem that can have a profound impact on individuals' health and...
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