10% of US Lack Health Insurance

By Miranda Hitti

WebMD Medical News



Jan. 12, 2005 -- Slightly more than 1 in 10 Americans have no health insurance, Gallup reports. That includes private health plans, Medicare, and Medicaid, says the polling company.



Medicaid and Medicare are government insurance programs. Medicaid pays for medical assistance for people with low incomes and resources. Medicare covers U.S. citizens who are aged 65 and older, along with some people under the age of 65 with disabilities.



Gallup conducted two health insurance surveys. The results are from data complied from information obtained in November 2003 and November 2004. More than 3,000 adults participated in the telephone interviews.



The survey showed that most adults (61%) had private health insurance coverage. Another 28% were covered by Medicaid and Medicare. That left 11% with no health insurance safety net.



Gallup dug a little deeper for more details. Age, income, race, gender, and health status made a difference.



Youth's Disadvantage



Young adults are often in better health than their elders. But if something goes wrong, they could be in financial trouble. Health insurance was scarcest among young adults. Of participants aged 18-29, 17% said they had absolutely no health insurance of any kind. While only 12% of adults aged 30-64 reported having no insurance.



Older generations fared better. It was much rarer for them go without health insurance. Less than 1% of those aged 65 or older said they totally lacked insurance.



Most middle-aged adults (30-64 years old) had private health insurance (nearly 80%). Virtually all senior citizens had Medicare or Medicaid coverage (98%). Insured young adults typically had private coverage (62% vs. 21% for Medicaid and Medicare).



Income's Influence



Medicaid and Medicare were far more common among lower-income households. Those government programs were relied on by half of adults living in households earning less than $30,000 annually. Private insurance covered 33% of adults in this income group and 17% were uninsured.



In contrast, the richest participants usually had private health insurance. Of those earning at least $75,000 yearly, 87% had private health insurance, 9% were covered by Medicaid or Medicare, and 4% weren't insured.



The middle class falls somewhere in between. Two out of three adults earning $30,000 -$75,000 per year had private health insurance, 24% were covered by Medicaid or Medicare, and 10% had no health insurance.



Black-White Differences



More whites than blacks had private health insurance (64% vs. 45%). Medicaid or Medicare coverage was more common among blacks than whites (44% vs. 26%). In fact, blacks were almost as likely to be covered by Medicaid or Medicare as private health plans.



Each group showed similar percentages of having no health insurance at all (10% of whites and 11% of blacks).



Gender Gap



More men than women had private health insurance (64% vs. 59%). More women than men used Medicaid or Medicare (32% vs. 24%).



Age might partly explain that. The survey included more women than men over age 65, the age group targeted by Medicare.



Health's Impact



Most participants didn't report major health problems. However, 21% said they had a physical disability and 31% cited a "long-term medical condition."



More than half of physically disabled participants (57%) relied on Medicaid or Medicare. A third had private health insurance, and 10% had no coverage at all.



For those with long-term medical problems, private health insurance was about as common as Medicaid or Medicare (43% vs. 46%). Eleven percent completely lacked coverage.