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Comparing Federal Government Surveys That Count the Uninsured: 2016

Caroline Au-Yeung, Research Fellow
Robert Hest, Senior Research Fellow
Joanna Turner, Senior Research Fellow
October 31, 2016

This brief provides an annual update to comparisons of uninsurance estimates from four federal surveys1:

  • The American Community Survey (ACS)
  • The Current Population Survey (CPS)
  • The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey - Household Component (MEPS-HC)
  • The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)

In this brief, we present current and historical national estimates of uininsurance along with the most recent avaialble state-level estimates from these surveys. We also discuss the main reasons for variation in the estimates across the different surveys.

Download a PDF of the brief.

 

1Another federal survey that provides estimates of the uninsured is the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), which provides uninsurance estimates for non-elderly adults (ages 18 to 64) nationally and among states. Details about the BRFSS are included in Appendix A of the brief, and estimates from the BRFSS are provided in Appendix B.