HEALTH: Uninsured, underinsured patients still served

JOHN LUKE | THE TIMES Dr. Frank Engel checks Blake Spence's vision during a recent visit to the Northshore Health Center in Portage. Blake's mother, Anna Spence and her husband are small business owners, and have to buy their own insurance. But the Spences only buy insurance for their children because it's cost prohibitive. "You just cross your fingers and hope for the best," she said of the lack in coverage for herself and her husband. Both have had major surgeries and had to pay out of pocket. The results of an AFL-CIO survey of nearly 24,000 people nationwide reveal many people found health care to be an increasingly burdensome expense and they had to defer treatments because of their cost.