At least two working-age Michiganians die each day because they don't have health insurance, according to a report released today.

The report, "Dying for Coverage in Michigan," released by Families USA, a nonpartisan Washington, D.C., health advocacy group, indicates at least 650 people Michiganians died in 2006, and between 2000 and 2006, at least 4,200 Michiganians ages 25 to 64 died simply because they lacked health insurance.

The uninsured die sooner because they are four times less likely to have regular care than their insured neighbors, the report says. Also, the uninsured are 30 percent less likely to have a regular checkup in the past year and are more likely to be diagnosed with a disease in an advanced stage.

Nationally, it means that in 2006, twice as many people died from lack of health insurance than from homicide.

This report is based on a groundbreaking 2002 report by the Institute of Medicine and a 2006 report by the Urban Institute.

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Source: Detroit News , 3.13 .08