The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has released the first early estimates of national uninsurance levels for 2016. Nationwide, the uninsurance rate among non-elderly Americans was 10.0% in the first quarter of 2016, which is statistically unchanged from 10.7% during the same period in 2015.
Overall Stability in Uninsurance
The new estimates, which come from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), show that uninsurance rates were stable across age, race/ethnicity, and income groups from the first quarter of 2015 to the first quarter of 2016. This stability follows recent and historic declines in uninsurance from 2013 to 2014 and from 2014 to 2015.
Continuing Disparities
Despite the low national rate of uninsurance, disparities in uninsurance continue among certain subpopulations. In the first quarter of 2016:
- 18.0% of people in poverty were uninsured
- 14.9% of young adults(ages 19-25) were uninsured
- 18.6% of Hispanics were uninsured
- 12.4% of non-Hispanics who reported other races or multiple races were uninsured
Coverage disparities also exist between residents of states that expanded Medicaid and residents of states that did not: In the first quarter of 2016, the percent of non-elderly Americans without coverage was 13.6% in non-expansion states, compared to 7.9% in Medicaid expansion states.
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Uninsurance Rate: Medicaid Expansion vs Non-Expansion States |
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A Note about the Numbers
The above estimates provide a point-in-time measure of uninsurance, indicating the percent of persons without coverage at the time of the interview. Unless indicated, estimates represent rates of uninsurance for the non-elderly (ages 0-64). First quarter refers to January–March. Medicaid expansion states include: AK, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, HI, IA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MN, MT, ND, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OR, PA, RI, VT, WA, and WV.