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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  • Pulling it Together: What Will Health Reform Do For Me?

    Perspective

    There is one poll number that may be more important to watch than any other if we have a big debate about health reform: The percentage of Americans who think that they or their families would be better off if the president and the Congress enacted major health reform legislation. It's a number that signals whether people think that health reform legislation will actually help them with the problems they are having in the current…

  • Pulling it Together: 2012: The ACA, and More

    From Drew Altman

    What is remarkable about 2012 (and the current era in health policy) is how many big health policy issues and marketplace changes will be in play at the same time: HEALTH REFORM: There is the implementation of a historic but fragile health reform law, with a Supreme Court decision pending and so much hanging in the balance. MEDICARE AND MEDICAID: There are continuing debates about potentially big changes in Medicare and Medicaid, driven by the…

  • Medicare Restructuring: The FEHBP Model

    Report

    This report provides a comprehensive description of the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and compares the FEHBP and Medicare programs as they are currently structured. It reviews evidence on the performance of FEHBP and examines the implications of restructuring Medicare to conform to a FEHBP-based plan. Overall, the report suggests that FEHBP offers some promise as an approach for reforming Medicare, but important issues would have to be addressed to adapt the model to…

  • Medicare Restructuring: The FEHBP Model A Summary

    Other Post

    Medicare Restructuring: The FEHBP Model Executive Summary Part 2 How Well Does FEHBP work? FEHBP has been somewhat more successful than Medicare in controlling costs. However, recent trends indicate that FEHBP's competitive structure alone cannot guarantee cost control over the long term. Until recently, FEHBP experienced slightly lower growth in spending per enrollee than Medicare. Over the period 1987 to 1997, Medicare spending per beneficiary grew at an annual rate of 8.1 percent. FEHBP spending…

  • Highlights of Kaiser Family Foundation Resources on the Uninsured

    Poll Finding

    With the upcoming U.S. Census Bureau release of 2007 health insurance coverage data, the Foundation has compiled some key resources about the nation’s uninsured population and related health policy issues. Key Resources Five Basic Facts on the Uninsured The Uninsured: A Primer Health Insurance Coverage in America Chartbook, 2006 States Moving Toward Comprehensive Health Care Reform – Interactive Map 2008 Presidential Candidate Health Care Proposals: Side-by-Side Summary Separating the Forest from the Trees in the…

  • Chartpack — The Public’s Health Care Agenda for the New President and Congress

    Poll Finding

    Chartpack -- The Public's Health Care Agenda for the New President and Congress This chartpack provides the key findings from the survey of the public's attitudes regarding the health care agenda for President Obama and the new Congress in 2009. It assesses the relative priority placed on health care by the American public as part of addressing the economic recession and as a large scale reform issue. The public's priorities for health care reform and…

  • Key Findings: Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — February 2009

    Poll Finding

    This document contains the key findings from the February 2009 Kaiser Health Tracking Poll. The survey was conducted February 3 through February 12, 2009, among a nationally representative random sample of 1,204 adults ages 18 and older. Telephone interviews conducted by landline (903) and cell phone (301, including 123 who had no landline telephone) were carried out in English and Spanish. The margin of sampling error for the total sample is plus or minus 3…

  • CHIP TIPS: Medicaid Performance Bonus “5 of 8” Requirements

    Issue Brief

    This brief, the second in a series, examines the requirements that states must meet to be eligible for the new "performance bonus" available to states that do an especially good job of signing up eligible children for Medicaid. The bonus, created by a provision in the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2009, is designed to help states cover the added costs that result when states are very successful in enrolling eligible children in…