“People aren’t aware of how many children get short shrift in the American health care system,” according to Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon. Wyden spoke at a briefing hosted by the journal Health Affairs. The journal released new research and public opinion data on public health spending on children and the elderly.

Warning of a “demographic tsunami” in the form of aging baby boomers swamping the nation’s health care system in years to come, Wyden said that health care reform should be a national priority.

Marc L. Berk, a senior fellow with the National Opinion Research Center, said that a recent survey of more than 2000 adults found strong support for a government role in insuring that the health care needs of both children and the elderly are met, with 90 percent of respondents saying the government should fund health care for all low-income children and elderly.

The same survey found that 59 percent of adults believe that the health care needs of children are not being met – while an even larger percentage, 67 percent, believe the needs of the elderly are also not being met.

Research also released yesterday shows that the government spends eight times as much money on health care for the elderly, as compared to what it spends on health care for children. On a per capita basis, the government spends about 17 times as much on health care for the elderly as for children -- $4,360, compared to $258.

“Even recognizing the real differences (between the health care costs of the elderly compared to children), it is reasonable to ask, are we being fair in allocating resources…?” asked Berk. “Are we in balance relative to the needs? And where is the American public with regard to that?”