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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  • National Survey of Physicians Part I: Doctors on Disparities in Medical Care

    Other Post

    Selected findings from the Kaiser Family Foundation's forthcoming National Survey of Physicians reveal that most physicians are aware of racial disparities in medical treatment for specific conditions, but they don't believe it is a widespread problem. In sharp contrast, African American physicians disagree with their fellow physicians with nearly eight in ten (77%) believing race and ethnicity impact how people are treated at least somewhat often. Physicians see insurance status as a key determinate of…

  • Pulling it Together: Business and Health Care Costs

    Perspective

    Hidden away on page 218 of our annual Employer Health Benefits Survey is a table that shows what employers think of the main strategies they have to control health care costs.  More specifically, the table shows what the person in the firm responsible for its health benefits thinks, which is whom we survey.  The short answer is, employer confidence in their own ability to control costs is not high. Not more than about a quarter…

  • Chartpack: Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — December 2009

    Poll Finding

    This document contains the chartpack from the December Health Tracking Poll. The survey was designed and analyzed by public opinion researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and was conducted December 7 through December 13, 2009, among a nationally representative random sample of 1,204 adults ages 18 and older. Telephone interviews conducted by landline (801) and cell phone (403, including 111 who had no landline telephone) were carried out in English and Spanish. The margin of…

  • Medicaid’s Role for Black Americans

    Fact Sheet

    This fact sheet examines Medicaid's role for black Americans. It includes data on Medicaid's coverage of black Americans and the program's impact on their access to care, as well as the impacts of the recent recession and the coming expansion of Medicaid under health reform on enrollment in Medicaid among black Americans. The fact sheet also has a chart showing state-by-state data on health insurance coverage of black Americans. Fact Sheet (.pdf)

  • Enhanced Medicaid Match Rates Expire in June 2011

    Fact Sheet

    This fact sheet discusses the role played by the enhanced federal Medicaid matching funds available to states through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), and the implications for state Medicaid programs as that extra assistance expires June 30, 2011. States used the ARRA enhanced Medicaid funding to address Medicaid funding shortfalls during the economic downturn, and to mitigate program cuts and address budget shortfalls. As national unemployment has increased in recent years…

  • Key Findings: Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — April 2009

    Poll Finding

    This document contains the key findings from the April Health Tracking Poll. The survey was designed and analyzed by public opinion researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and was conducted April 2 through April 8, 2009, among a nationally representative random sample of 1,203 adults ages 18 and older. Telephone interviews conducted by landline (902) and cell phone (301, including 98 who had no landline telephone) were carried out in English and Spanish. The margin…

  • Key Findings: Kaiser Health Tracking Poll? – June 2009

    Poll Finding

    This document contains the key findings from the June Health Tracking Poll. The survey was designed and analyzed by public opinion researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and was conducted June 1 through June 8, 2009, among a nationally representative random sample of 1,205 adults ages 18 and older. Telephone interviews conducted by landline (804) and cell phone (401, including 157 who had no landline telephone) were carried out in English and Spanish. The margin…

  • Explaining Health Care Reform: Questions About the Extension of Dependent Coverage to Age 26

    Issue Brief

    The new health reform law requires private health insurers that offer dependent coverage to children to allow young adults up to age 26 to remain on their parent's insurance plan. This provision is among the first in the reform law to take effect, and it increases the availability of insurance to a population that currently has a high uninsured rate. This short summary answers basic questions about the dependent coverage expansion and explains how the…

  • State Variation in Medicaid Pharmacy Benefit Use Among Dual-Eligible Beneficiaries

    Report

    This study examines Medicaid pharmacy benefit use and spending among beneficiaries dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid in 10 states by analyzing 1995 enrollment and claims data from a new 12-state database. The study finds that dual-eligibles are relatively high users of the Medicaid pharmacy benefit, with substantial variation in both drug use and spending among this population across the 10 study states. This variation appears to persist independent of beneficiaries' health status and is…