By Ari A. Matusiak
Co-Founder of Young Invincibles

From town hall shouting matches to talking heads on television, senior citizens and retiring baby boomers have dominated the spotlight in the current health care debate. All the while, the plight of perhaps the most vulnerable cohort in America—young adults from 18 to 34—has largely been neglected or glossed over. This critical oversight must be addressed. These “young invincibles,” as they are often described, are disproportionately uninsured or underinsured, yet are still highly likely to need costly medical care.

The dire state of health insurance for young adults in America is a mirror of its wider health care failings. The steady erosion of workplace rights and of employment opportunities has hit this group particularly hard. Some 31 percent of young people say their employer offers no health care option, according to a 2009 AFL-CIO study. A government report found that 50 percent of young adults working for small firms were uninsured. Young Americans with no insurance are overwhelmingly unable to afford insurance without an employer contribution and live with the daily fear that a single medical event could send them into a spiral of debt. The 13.7 million young uninsured are not invincible—they are a significant cohort that desperately needs meaningful reform.

The grim data about young Americans’ health care woes illustrates the way in which the robustness of the health care and labor sectors are inextricably linked. More than any other single group, young invincibles suffer from unemployment (25.4 percent for 19-to-23-year-olds), underemployment and lack of benefits. An SEIU study showed that in Pennsylvania, insurance premiums rose 6.4 percent faster than wages, with predictable results. AFSCME has pointed out that as premiums rise, unions’ bargaining power falls, and labor leaders must use all their power simply to preserve health care. The introduction of a new, equitable health insurance program for young Americans would have positive ripple effects throughout the economy.

For young adults facing the specter of unemployment or lack of insurance, the picture is bleak indeed. Health care is ruinously expensive, underlying conditions such as asthma or diabetes are grounds for disqualification and fewer employers than ever offer the option of insurance. Fortunately, real reform is achievable.

Building on the growing feeling of disenfranchisement, young adults now have a voice in the debate and can offer a prescription for how to begin addressing the insurance woes that plague this group. Organizations such as Young Invincibles have issued a concrete and attainable series of goals for Congress to include in the health care bill. These include a cap on insurance premiums for low-income Americans, an extension of parental health benefits until age 26 and a public option that would make affordable insurance available to all.

Finally, any bill that passes must eliminate insurance companies’ ability to deny coverage for chronic ailments or to charge outrageous deductibles for those unlucky enough to live with hypertension or heart disease or for anyone at all.

The ramifications of significant health care reform are enormous. By reducing the likelihood of a catastrophic slide into debt, reform will yield a generation of young workers who are more independent and productive and a labor landscape that remains vibrant.  It is time for us to push hard for reform. The stakes have never been higher.

We hope you can join us.

Ari Matusiak is co-founder of Young Invincibles, a national campaign committed to raising the voices of 18-to-34-year-olds and mobilizing young Americans to demand quality, affordable health care for all Americans.