Home Uninsured Topics

Uninsured

New and noteworthy

Affordability Is the Issue Now, But Look for the Uninsured to Make a Comeback

A new column on the uninsured from President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman explains: “The uninsured is not the most politically salient problem in health care now, that’s affordability, nor is it the non-problem some say it is. But it’s coming back. And the problem of the chronically ill uninsured is glaring.” Read more.

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.

More on the uninsured population >>

Data and analysis

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.

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 tax credits that would make ACA coverage affordable to them.

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
Other key facts about the uninsured >>

Latest News

More KFF Health News

Stay informed.

Get KFF's latest on the Uninsured

Stay informed.

Get KFF's latest on the Uninsured

View the Latest: Uninsured

Filter

List Grid

1,171 - 1,180 of 1,309 Results

  • The Effects of the Economic Recession on Communities of Color

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief examines some of the challenges associated with employment, daily life and access to health care among racial minorities, who tend to be disproportionately affected by many of the consequences of economic hard times. High unemployment rates, coupled with vast differences in savings and wealth, have left many individuals struggling to afford such basic necessities as housing and food, and have resulted in lapses in health coverage and difficulties paying for needed medical…

  • The New Review and Approval Process Rule for Section 1115 Medicaid and CHIP Demonstration Waivers

    Fact Sheet

    For many years, Section 1115 waivers have been used in the Medicaid program to provide states an avenue to test and implement coverage approaches that do not meet federal program rules, but there have been longstanding concerns about the lack of public input and transparency in the waiver approval process. As a result, the Affordable Care Act required the Department of Health and Human Services to issue regulations designed to ensure that the public has…

  • Putting Men’s Health Care Disparities on the Map: Examining Racial and Ethnic Disparities at the State Level

    Report

    This Kaiser Family Foundation report finds that men of color in almost every state continue to fare worse than white men on a variety of measures of health, health care access and other social determinants of health. It documents the persistence of such disparities between white men and men of color -- and among different groups within men of color -- on 22 indicators of health and well-being, including rates of diseases such as AIDS,…

  • How Do M+C Plans Manage Pharmacy Benefits? Implications for Medicare Reform

    Report

    Understanding how Medicare+Choice (M+C) plans manage their drug benefits may generate important lessons for Medicare. This report, based on interviews with both national and regional managed care firms, provides an in-depth look at how plans have managed their M+C outpatient pharmacy benefits in recent years. Findings show that plans rely on a number of cost management strategies to constrain the growth in drug spending including formularies, tiered-copayments, mail-order benefits, and fixed caps or dollar limits…

  • Kaiser Family Foundation/Field Institute Survey of Californians on the Health Care Initiatives, Propositions 214 and 216

    Report

    Results of two surveys that track Californian's knowledge of the two initiatives on the California Ballot, Propositions 214 and 216 (also known as the Patient Protection Acts) and attitudes towards them as the debate unfolds. The surveys were conducted from August 14-21, 1996 and from September 23-30, 1996. Also included with this material is data on how much is being spent on television advertising for and against the propositions and who is being reached by…

  • The President’s FY 2007 Budget Proposal: Overview and Briefing Charts

    Report

    This chartpack reviews the President’s FY 2007 budget request to Congress and highlights overall budget assumptions and funding for major health programs. It begins with a description of the federal budget process, followed by summary information on the overall composition of the Administration’s budget. Overall, the budget includes net reductions for Medicare, Medicaid, and other health programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services. The budget also includes additional expenditures for proposals to…

  • Health Insurance Coverage of Women, State Estimates

    Fact Sheet

    This fact sheet, Health Insurance Coverage of Women, provides state-by-state data on the uninsured rate, as well as rates of private insurance coverage and Medicaid coverage, among women nationally, in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

  • National ADAP Monitoring Project, Annual Report, 2006

    Report

    The National ADAP Monitoring Report, 2006 provides the latest data on state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs). ADAPs, authorized under Title II of the Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency (CARE) Act, provide HIV/AIDS-related prescription drugs to uninsured and underinsured individuals living with HIV/AIDS. ADAPs operate in 57 U.S. states, territories and associated jurisdictions. The report, the tenth in an annual series, was prepared by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the National Alliance of State…

  • Opening Doorways to Health Care for Children: 10 Steps to Ensure Eligible but Uninsured Children Get Health Insurance

    Report

    Despite the success of Medicaid and SCHIP in reducing the number of uninsured low-income children by one-third in the last decade, over eight million children remain uninsured. Seventy percent of these uninsured children are eligible for public health coverage. This report by the Children's Partnership lays out a plan for creating a series of enrollment doorways that make enrollment and renewal of children both routine and timely -- as close to automatic as possible. The…

  • Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers:  Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care

    Report

    Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers: Health Insurance Coverage and Access to Care Nearly three million workers earn their living through migrant or seasonal farm labor. Migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their families confront health challenges stemming from the nature of their work, their extreme poverty and mobility, and living and working arrangements that impede access to health coverage and care. This brief provides an overview of migrant and seasonal farmworkers and the health challenges they face…