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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  • Threadbare:  Holes in America’s Health Care Safety Net

    Report

    Threadbare: Holes in America’s Health Care Safety Net This report describes the impact of coverage gaps in our safety net through the perspectives of those who provide care to the uninsured and first-hand accounts of the uninsured who are seeking care. Report (.pdf)

  • Voices of the Storm: Health Experiences of Low-Income Katrina Survivors

    Report

    This report provides key findings from interviews with low-income Katrina survivors about their health care experiences after the storm to provide insight into how they fared and to highlight ways to improve the response to this and future disasters. The report also includes several in-depth, individual profiles of survivors’ health care experiences and highlights some specific experiences of individuals with HIV/AIDS. The report is based on in-person interviews conducted with more than 40 survivors and…

  • The Uninsured And The Difference Health Insurance Makes

    Fact Sheet

    This fact sheet describes the characteristics of the uninsured and explains the recent increase in this population. It also examines the difference that health insurance can make and how health reform is expected to cover millions more people.

  • Health Challenges for the People of New Orleans

    Poll Finding

    Health Challenges for the People of New Orleans This analysis of a household survey of Greater New Orleans area residents conducted in Fall 2006 examines the health care status of the adult population and details their health coverage and access to health care services after the disaster. News Release Full Report (.pdf) Executive Summary (.pdf) Health Status (.pdf) Health Coverage and Access (.pdf) Households with Children (.pdf) Appendices (.pdf)

  • NPR/KFF/HSPH Survey: Public Views on SCHIP Reauthorization: Topline

    Poll Finding

    These toplines present detailed survey results from an October 2007 survey conducted jointly by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and the Harvard School of Public Health on the public’s views and opinions of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program and the pending legislation surrounding its reauthorization. Toplines (.pdf)

  • Healthy Indiana Plan: Key Facts and Issues

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief provides an overview of Indiana's new Medicaid waiver program, the Healthy Indiana Plan, which is the first that allows a state to use Medicaid funds to provide a benefit package modeled after a high-deductible plan and health savings account to previously uninsured adults. This piece examines key components of the plan and identifies key issues to consider. Executive Summary (.pdf) Issue Brief (.pdf)

  • The 2005 Kaiser Low-Income Coverage and Access Survey: Survey Methods and Baseline Tables

    Issue Brief

    The 2005 Kaiser Low-Income Coverage and Access Survey: Survey Methods and Baseline Tables This document details the methods used to develop the 2005 Kaiser Low-Income Coverage and Access Survey dataset and presents baseline tables on population demographics, overall and by health coverage. The Kaiser Family Foundation conducted this national survey to examine health insurance coverage, access to care and the impact of health costs on the low-income population. The majority of the uninsured are low-income,…

  • Spotlight on Low-Income Uninsured Young Adults: Causes and Consequences

    Issue Brief

    Spotlight on Low-Income Uninsured Young Adults: Causes and Consequences This brief is the latest in a series using data from the 2005 Kaiser Low-Income Coverage and Access Survey to examine health coverage, access, and financial burdens associated with health care for young adults ages 19 to 29 in low-income families. The findings demonstrate that many low-income uninsured young adults experience problems gaining access to needed health care, with adverse consequences for both their health and…

  • Pulling It Together: The “R” Word Is Back

    Perspective

    Longer ago than I care to admit, I got my start in health policy at M.I.T. when I wrote a book about health care regulation. The book was about a long forgotten attempt to rationalize the health care system through an elaborate health planning program set up in the seventies under the National Health Planning and Resources Development Act. It established a system of federal, state and regional planning bodies to control health care costs by limiting the supply of…