Social Return on Investment

There are hundreds more people like Ruby who are now contributing members of society because of the help and assistance they have received from PHLP. The use of PHLP’s resources has the potential to save society hundreds of millions of dollars in uncompensated care.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the annual cost of uncompensated care for 40 million uninsured Americans in 2004 was $100 billion, meaning that one uninsured person equals about $2,500 in uncompensated economic value. With an economic investment of about $1 million annually, PHLP provides services or publicly funded insurance to about 2,000 of the 3,000 clients contacted.  According to the Foundation, the cost to insure one person through Medicaid in the state of Pennsylvania is about $4,832. Although this number when compared to $2,500 seems to be higher, in actuality insuring these citizens saves society a huge cost, as insuring these 2,000 people will create a cost of $9,664,000 in compensated care, which is not a thrown-out cost as it would be if these people were uninsured (Kaiser Family Foundation 2009).

A study by the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured (2004: 7) estimated the annual economic value of foregone health per uninsured person to be $2,500.  By ensuring that 2,000 of its clients receive the healthcare benefits they are eligible for, PHLP generates economic value of up to $5 million. Given that the annual cost of running the Helpline is $1 million, PHLP’s services generate an annual social return of approximately 400%.

In addition, it’s been proven that people with insurance have a tendency to have stronger relationships with healthcare providers and have better health outcomes. PHLP’s counsel and actions thus ensure a better quality of life for those faced with service denials, at a lower cost to society.