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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 >>

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  • The Fraying Link Between Work and Health Insurance: Trends in Employer-Sponsored Insurance for Employees, 2000-2007

    Report

    This analysis shows that employer-sponsored coverage began declining after 2000 due to an economic downturn that saw rising unemployment, declining family incomes and more workers moving into temporary work, part-time work and other employment arrangements where health benefits were not provided. Employer-sponsored coverage continued to decline after 2003 despite improvements in the economy and slower growth in health care costs. The decline in coverage was due both to falloffs in the share of employees with…

  • Health Reform and Communities of Color: Implications for Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief examines the key provisions of the 2010 health reform law that will expand health coverage and are likely to improve access to care for people of color, as well as some of the other provisions that will likely have either a direct or indirect impact on health disparities. Issue Brief (.pdf)) Previous Version: November 2009 (.pdf)

  • Inside Deficit Reduction: What It Means For Medicaid

    Event Date:
    Event

    This briefing, co-sponsored by the Alliance for Health Reform, the Kaiser Family Foundation, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and The SCAN Foundation, featured panelists discussing which deficit-reduction proposals affecting Medicaid might receive serious consideration by the congressional "super committee," as well as what kind of impact such changes would have on Medicaid enrollees, providers and state Medicaid programs. For more information, please visit the Alliance's event page. Full Video   Speakers for this session: The…

  • Native Americans and Medicaid: Coverage and Financing Issues – Report

    Report

    Native Americans and Medicaid:Coverage and Financing Issues Prepared by Andy Schneider and JoAnn Martinez, The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities for The Kaiser Commission on the Future of Medicaid December 1997 Table Of ContentsHighlights ii I: Background On Native American Health Care 1 II: Medicaid's Role For Native Americans 4 1. Medicaid as a Source of Health Coverage 4 2. Medicaid as a Source of Revenue for Hospitals and Clinics 6 3. Medicaid and…

  • How Well Does the Employment-Based Health Insurance System Work for Low-Income Families? – Issue Paper

    Report

    How Well Does the Employment-Based Health Insurance System Work for Low-Income Families? September 1998 Most Americans receive health insurance coverage through the workplace. Unfortunately, however, many workers are left out, especially low-wage workers and their families. Being a low paid worker does not mean just that wages are low. It also means a lower likelihood of receiving health insurance protection on the job. Low-wage workers have never been as likely as the better paid to…

  • Ensuring Linguistic Access in Health Care Settings: An Overview of Current Legal Rights and Responsibilities

    Report

    In order to ensure access to care for limited English proficient residents, there are a number of federal and state laws and policies that compel publicly funded health care programs and activities to provide language access. This report focuses on the language access responsibilities of health care and coverage providers pursuant to federal civil rights laws. Report (.pdf)