Uninsured

New and noteworthy

Quote from KFF President and CEO Drew Altman reads, "when it comes to the “affordability crisis” driving the national discussion of health care today, the chronically ill, and most of all the chronically ill uninsured, are the tip of the spear."

The Group that Struggles the Most in American Health Care

In a new column, Dr. Drew Altman, KFF’s Founding President and CEO, previews findings about the chronically ill uninsured from a large KFF survey of 25,000 Americans focusing on the cost and access challenges facing the chronically ill, which will be released tomorrow. He writes: “There are more than enough needs to go around in American health care, but if I had to pick the one group that struggles the most with costs and access, it would be people with chronic illnesses who are also uninsured.”

Other “Beyond the Data” columns >>

Key Facts about the Uninsured Population

The number and share of people without insurance grew in 2024, increasing for the first time since 2019, according to KFF’s analysis of data from the American Community Survey (ACS). This issue brief describes trends in health coverage in 2024, examines the characteristics of the uninsured population , and summarizes the access and financial implications of not having coverage.

Data and analysis

The coverage gap exists because some states did not expand Medicaid under the ACA to cover adults under age 65 without dependent children with incomes at/below 138% of the federal poverty level (FPL)

How Many Uninsured Are in the Coverage Gap?

An estimated 1.4 million uninsured individuals in the 10 states without Medicaid expansion, including many working adults, people of color, and those with disabilities, remain in the "coverage gap," ineligible for Medicaid or for ACA tax credits that would make coverage affordable.

The Uninsured and Health Coverage

This Health Policy 101 chapter examines the share of the United States population who are uninsured, highlighting their demographics and the challenges they face because of the lack of coverage.

Key Facts on Health Coverage of Immigrants

This fact sheet provides an overview of health coverage for immigrants based on data from the 2023 KFF/LA Times Survey of Immigrants. As of 2023, half of likely undocumented immigrant adults and one in five lawfully present immigrant adults reported being uninsured.

Who was uninsured in 2024?

Latest Polling
9.8%

The share of people under age 65 without insurance
62%

The share of uninsured adults who said they were uninsured because coverage is not affordable
59%

The share of uninsured adults who said they or someone living with them had problems paying for health care
39%

The share of uninsured adults who reported delaying or not getting needed care or medication due to cost

Stay informed.

Stay informed.

Filter

1,021-1,030 of 1,312 results

  • Responding to the Threat of Bioterrorism:  Is California’s Public Health System Ready? — Issue Brief

    Issue Brief

    Responding to the Threat of Bioterrorism: Is California's Public Health System Ready? -- Issue Brief A 4-page issue brief which looks at the threat of bioterrorism and the public health system s role in responding to such an attack. The issue brief also addresses what can be done nationally and in California to prepare for a possible bioterrorist attack. The brief lists the panel for a California Health Policy Roundtable to be held in Sacramento,…

  • Prescription Drug Discount Card Programs: Implications for Medicare Beneficiaries

    Report

    This testimony was delivered by Tricia Neuman, a vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation, at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on the Bush Administration's Proposals for Medicare Modernization. The statement, which draws upon a report prepared for the Foundation by Health Policy Alternatives, Inc., provides an overview of existing prescription drug discount card programs, describes some of the features of the Administration's recently released proposal for a Medicare-endorsed discount card program, and raises some…

  • The President’s Fiscal Year 2003 Budget:  An Overview of Health Programs

    Report

    The President's Fiscal Year 2003 Budget: An Overview of Health Programs A new chartbook describes the government's overall budget situation and examines the health policies and programs proposed in the President's latest budget. Chartbook View a webcast of A Capitol Hill briefing on budgets and health care

  • The New Challenge of the Uninsured: Coverage in the Current Economy

    Event Date:
    Event

    Diane Rowland, executive director of the Commission, testified to the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health about health coverage for the uninsured in the current economy and discussed the special challenges of providing them coverage during uncertain economic times. Please note: the video is no longer available. If you have an urgent need for the video, you may contact us (choose “problem with video” on the form) and we will try to locate the…

  • The New Medicaid and CHIP Waiver Initiatives

    Report

    A new report describes past waiver activity, the principles of the new HIFA initiative, and related policy implications. Background Paper Appendix: Side-by-Side Comparison

  • Prescription Drug Discount Cards: Current Programs and Issues

    Report

    As policymakers consider a range of approaches to providing prescription drug coverage to the Medicare population in today s tight budgetary environment, one proposal that has been put forth by the Bush Administration is that of a Medicare-endorsed prescription drug discount card program. This report describes the range of existing discount card programs run by both private sponsors and state governments and provides background information on the implications of this approach to assisting Medicare beneficiaries…

  • An Analysis of Reforming Medicare Through a ‘Premium Support’ Program

    Report

    An Analysis of Reforming Medicare Through a 'Premium Support' Program This report examines one of the leading approaches to reforming the Medicare program, known as premium support. Under this model, the current Medicare program would be replaced by a system of competing public and private health plans, and the federal government would pay a set amount per beneficiary. The authors conclude that, while premium support could potentially improve Medicare's efficiency and improve quality, traditional Medicare…

  • A Medicare Buy-In for the Near Elderly: Design Issues and Potential Effects on Coverage

    Report

    This report examines a Medicare-based approach to reducing the ranks of the uninsured that would permit early retirees between the ages of 62 and 65 to purchase coverage under Medicare. The paper begins with an overview of the challenges of insuring the near-elderly and explores the potential effects of a Medicare buy-in on coverage of this population. The authors conclude that, unless premiums for such coverage were low or tied to enrollees' income, this approach…

  • Rising Unemployment and the Uninsured

    Fact Sheet

    A brief policy analysis (revised as of January 2002) examines the relationship between the unemployment rate and increases in the uninsured and finds that for every percentage point increase in the unemployment rate, 1.2 million people will become uninsured.