* CNN…
The share of uninsured Americans rose for the first time in nearly a decade, the Census Bureau reported Tuesday.
The rate increased to 8.5% in 2018, up half a percentage point a year earlier. Some 27.5 million people were uninsured last year, a jump of 1.9 million people.
Driving the increase, the first since 2009, was a decline in the share of people covered by Medicaid. The percentage of those with private coverage — either through their employers or directly purchased on the individual market — did not statistically change, while the share of those on Medicare increased as the population aged.
* Public Radio…
Nearly half a million more children were uninsured in 2018 than in 2017, according to data out Tuesday from the U.S. Census Bureau. The drop stems primarily from a decline in the number of children covered by public programs such programs as Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
For decades, getting more children to have health insurance was a cause with strong bipartisan support, and the uninsured rate has steadily declined. Now that trend is reversing. For the second year in a row, there was an uptick — 5.5% of children under age 19 did not have health insurance last year.
* If you click here you’ll see the state-by-state data. Illinois had about 875,000 uninsured people last year, about 15,000 more than 2017. That’s an increase of 0.2 percent. However, Illinois was not one of the states which saw a change “statistically different from zero at the 90 percent confidence level.” The margin of error for the state’s survey was +/- 0.3 percent.
- Steve - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 2:27 pm:
Without an individual mandate any longer, this isn’t that surprising. Many young people don’t feel health insurance is worth the cost .
- NoGifts - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 2:31 pm:
More uninsured people with fewer residents.
- ItsMillerTime - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 2:38 pm:
Until we have universal healthcare, this problem will keep happening and perhaps even get worse.
- Waffle Fries - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 2:39 pm:
So much winning.
At what point can we say America is now Great Again? Now?
- Steve - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 2:52 pm:
- Waffle Fries -
I’d settle for more competition in what’s offered in the individual market and repealing the Mccarran Ferguson Act.
- NeverPoliticallyCorrect - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 3:15 pm:
It’s a choice issue. There are those who don’t want it. Can’t say I agree with that choice but it is theirs to make currently.
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 3:15 pm:
===It’s a choice issue===
Not for the kids.
- Grandson of Man - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 3:21 pm:
Republicans have to run on this, that people are losing their health insurance for the first time since the ACA. After what happened in the 2018 elections in Illinois and the US House, good luck.
- Grandson of Man - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 3:39 pm:
The uninsured rate should be like virtually every other top economic country in the world, zero or close to it. It’s embarrassing for all of us when we won’t do what even conservatives in other countries support: universal healthcare.
The photo that speaks so many words is Trump and the GOP celebrating at the White House after the House passed ACA repeal.
https://tinyurl.com/yxnxhlw8
- west chicago - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 3:41 pm:
“Its a choice”?
It is a price issue. With the lowest priced plans with such high deductibles, it is hard to justify paying a pretty hefty premium (even for the lowest priced plans) when unless you have a major illness, you will get nothing covered except perhaps a preventive health screen.
- RNUG - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 4:22 pm:
== It is a price issue. ==
Yes, it is. My son can buy decent health insurance through his work … but his take-home pay would be basically zero. So, since the family doesn’t make much and they have kids, they have to rely on managed Medicaid.
- Career Politician 2.0 - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 5:11 pm:
===It’s a choice issue===
=Not for the kids=
Even if you have a good playing job or a contract employee, the premiums are around $461 for a plan that has a $5k deductible.
Yes, it can be a choice… but the ACA needs reformed. I would challenge anyone with great insurance, to go on ACA for 1 year.
- thoughts matter - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 7:03 pm:
There’s not much that can be done until people come to terms with the fact that single payer comprehensive insurance with commercial excess insurance will work. That’s basically what Medicare is. Why did Medicare begin? To provide insurance for senior citizens because they either couldn’t get insurance or couldn’t afford it. Isn’t that where we are now for everyone under 65?
- Thoughts matter - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 7:13 pm:
Clarifying - not everyone under 65. But enough of them that it
is a real problem.
- Blue Dog Dem - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 9:18 pm:
Maybe if we eliminated paying billions upon billions on youth sports, we could emulate Europe and Asia and subsidize healthcare to a greater extent. Nobody, I mean nobody talks this. But we all know it’s the truth.
- 47th Ward - Thursday, Sep 12, 19 @ 9:30 pm:
Wow Dog, that some genuine frontier gibberish my friend.
First, Asia isn’t typically noted for its socialized healthcare systems. Second, if we had more youth athletic activities, if every kid got decent facilities and good coaches, we’d save money long term on healthcare.
That comment made us all dumber. Try harder.
- Grandson of Man - Friday, Sep 13, 19 @ 7:44 am:
“I would challenge anyone with great insurance, to go on ACA for 1 year.”
The ACA is in large part for people who already didn’t have insurance. Before the ACA there was no coverage guarantee for preexisting conditions, cost limits for very sick people and no kids staying on their parents’ insurance until age 26, among other protections. In some places the ACA greatly reduced the uninsured rate, like Kentucky and Arkansas.
Republicans have been in an eye-popping fit to sabotage and get rid of the most free market health expansion system among leading economic countries (most private insurance). In 2018 the ACA was a big issue, and Republicans lost the US House and got creamed in Illinois. Go ahead, run on sabotage and repeal of health insurance.
- Da Big Bad Wolf - Monday, Sep 16, 19 @ 9:26 am:
==Nobody, I mean nobody talks this.==
People are talking about this. The Atlantic has an article about this you might find interesting. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theatlantic.com/amp/article/309447/?espv=1
Re 47th Ward’s unkind remark, speak for yourself. Comments don’t make people dumber. Even ones we disagree with.