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

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  • Impact of Coronavirus on Community Health Centers

    Issue Brief

    Community health centers are a national network of safety net primary care providers that fill an important role in national, state, and local responses to the coronavirus pandemic. This brief presents findings from new data that provide insights into how health centers are adapting their services in response to the pandemic and how coronavirus is affecting their operations and long-term financial outlook with patient visits and revenue from those visits dropping precipitously.

  • Uninsured Most Likely to Delay or Go Without Care or Prescription Drugs Due to Cost

    Feature

    Many uninsured people do not obtain the treatments their health care providers recommend for them because of the cost of care. In 2018, uninsured nonelderly adults were more than three times as likely as adults with private coverage to say that they postponed or did not get a needed prescription drug due to cost.

  • The Affordable Care Act Doesn’t Rank Highly As an Issue for Voters in the Presidential Primaries

    News Release

    Despite Anecdotal Reports about Narrow Networks, 87% of Working-Age Adults with Insurance Are Satisfied With Their Plan's Choice of Doctors; 12% Say They Had to Change Doctors in Past Year As the ACA's Open Enrollment Nears End, Most of Those Who Remain Uninsured Are Disengaged While this month Congress passed and President Obama vetoed legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act, voters nationally aren't focused on the law in this year's presidential election, the latest…

  • Key Data on Health and Health Coverage in South Carolina

    Fact Sheet

    This fact sheet draws on data from “Health and Health Coverage in the South: A Data Update” to highlight findings for South Carolina. The findings show the current status of health and health coverage in the state and the potential coverage gains that may be achieved through the Affordable Care Act.

  • Behind the Challenges to Universal Health Coverage

    From Drew Altman

    In this column for The Wall Street Journal's Think Tank, Drew Altman discusses why political reality and the diverse makeup of the remaining uninsured population mean that the likeliest path to universal coverage is a multi-step approach.

  • Medicare-for-All vs. Single Payer: The Impact of Labels

    From Drew Altman

    In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, "Medicare-for-All vs. Single Payer: The Impact of Labels", Drew Altman uses new polling on a Medicare-for-all or single payer health system to explain how what you call a health reform plan can substantially affect the public's response.

  • Outreach and Enrollment Strategies for Reaching the Medicaid Eligible but Uninsured Population

    Issue Brief

    This brief identifies a range of successful strategies to reach and enroll Medicaid- and CHIP-eligible individuals as well as options to facilitate renewals. It draws on a collection of previous work examining state enrollment experiences after implementation of the ACA. In sum, it shows that states that have achieved enrollment success have embraced an array of strategies and approaches that include promoting the expansion through strong leadership and collaboration, implementing broad marketing and outreach campaigns,…