Dynamics of Health Insurance in Uninsured Population
A Health Care Article Contributed by Mita Majumdar
Health Insurance in Relation to Income
Health insurance provides financial protection against health related expenses. However, the health insurance premiums in United States have risen exorbitantly in the past few years, eroding the income of an average American. Statistically, the household money income remained unchanged in the last couple of years preceded by two consecutive years of decline. But the health insurance premiums have risen almost three times since then.
People Not Opting for Health Insurance
An estimated 15.6 per cent of the America's population which comes around to forty five million people in the year 2003, and 15.2 per cent in the year 2002, were without health insurance coverage. And the number of people without health insurance coverage is growing every year. Number of factors are responsible for this.
Dynamics of Health Insurance Coverage
Nearly ninety per cent of the people who were not insured were from families in which at least one person worked, either part time or full time. Amongst the working families, seventy five of the uninsured do not have access to insurance coverage through their employer, which is the dominant form of health care coverage among the non-elderly, while the other twenty five per cent have access to employment based insurance but do not accept it.
It is also a fact that lower-wage workers or employees are less likely than higher wage earners to have access to employment based health insurance and are less likely to accept it when it is offered to them.
The Uninsured Spells in Health Insurance
The uninsured spells in health insurance coverage amongst the Americans is a common phenomenon. Although many uninsured spells are relatively short, that is between two to six months, some are really long. Many people who become uninsured are in transition from one source of coverage to another. This usually happens because of a waiting period for health insurance coverage at a new job, so their uninsured spells are relatively brief.
Duration of uninsured spells varies with education levels too. It is estimated that twenty three per cent of spells among people in which no one graduated from high school last more than two years compared to the eight per cent among people in families in which at least one person has a college degree.
Race, ethnicity and income of the uninsured person is also a major factor contributing to long duration of uninsured spells in health insurance. Long uninsured spells are more common among Hispanics and people with low income. However, recent statistics show that the percentage of long uninsured spells has increased among non-Hispanic whites.
Adults are more likely than children to experience long uninsured spells of health insurance. The availability of Medicaid coverage may explain some of that discrepancy, wherein coverage is available to many children in low income families, but the great majority of low income adults are not eligible for the program. Moreover, it has been observed that a single adult without children may be less inclined to seek health insurance.
