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New and noteworthy

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.

State Health Facts: Health Coverage & the Uninsured

Get data on health insurance status for the population overall and broken down by age, gender, and income. More than 800 up-to-date health indicators at the state level can be mapped, ranked, and downloaded through State Health Facts.

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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  • 2008 Election Briefs

    Poll Finding

    Health care remains among the top three election issues voters want to hear the presidential candidates discuss. Kaiser's new series of election briefs frame the challenges the heath care system faces, provide basic facts, and offer questions to assess the presidential candidates' plans on key health policy issues. Check back for more issue briefs.  Eliminating Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Health Care: What are the Options  Health Care Costs and Election 2008  Women's Health and Election 2008…

  • Low-Income Adults in New Orleans in 2008: Who Are They and How Are They Faring?

    Poll Finding

    Based on data from Kaiser's Second Post-Katrina Survey, this Survey Brief profiles low-income adults in New Orleans in 2008, examining their demographics, personal recovery from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, worries and concerns, and financial and health care challenges. It finds that low-income adults in New Orleans are more likely than other adults in the city to still be dealing with recovery from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and facing financial and health care challenges.…

  • The Decline in the Uninsured in 2007: Why Did It Happen and Can It Last?

    Issue Brief

    This policy brief examines the underlying shifts in health insurance coverage in 2007, which resulted in a 1.5 million decrease in the number of uninsured people under age 65, due to increased public coverage. This includes about 300,000 in Massachusetts, which implemented its comprehensive health reform that year. The brief also projects that the current economic downturn and rising unemployment rate likely will cause the number of uninsured to grow by at least 2 million…

  • Trends in Access to Care Among Working-Age Adults, 1997-2006

    Issue Brief

    Trends in Access to Care Among Working-Age Adults, 1997-2006 This policy brief finds about 39 million working-age adults nationally reported cost as a barrier to receiving needed health care in 2006, a number that grew by an average of 1 million people annually over the decade studied. Uninsured working-aged adults experienced the most consistent erosion over the 10 years, resulting in a widening gap in access to care between insured and uninsured adults. Policy Brief…

  • Pulling It Together: What Do We Want Health Insurance To Be?

    Perspective

    Trends in the health insurance marketplace show substantial growth in high deductible health plans, especially among smaller firms, where 35% of workers are now covered by plans with a deductible of $1,000 or more. That's according to our recently released employer health benefits survey, which we have been conducting now for ten years. The majority of these plans are simply high deductible health plans; only a minority are so-called "consumer driven" plans with savings accounts.…

  • Covering the Uninsured: Options for Reform

    Issue Brief

    Download PDF Key Facts on the Uninsured In 2007, 45 million nonelderly people in the United States lacked health coverage More than eight in ten uninsured people (81%) come from working families About two-thirds of the nonelderly uninsured are from low-income families (income below 200% of poverty, about $42,400 for a family of 4 in 2007) More than one in three people (35%) living in poverty are uninsured, compared with one in twenty people (5%)…

  • 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: A Recovery Raises Expectations Too

    Perspective

    New Orleans is a city still struggling with the aftermath of Katrina and the levee breaks. The people of New Orleans feel that the nation and the federal government have largely forgotten them. Those are the results of our 2008 survey of the people of New Orleans, the second in a series we are doing to track progress in the recovery from the perspective of the residents of the city themselves. As the head of a…