Industry News

On August 28, 2019, the Commonwealth Fund released its survey brief, Who Are the Remaining Uninsured, and Why Do They Lack Coverage?  The report is based on findings from the Commonwealth Fund Biennial Health Insurance Survey, 2018.  According to the survey, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has expanded and helped to improve coverage options for individuals without access to job-based health plans.  However, an estimated   30.4 million individuals were uninsured in 2018, up from a low of 28.6 million in 2016.  The survey found that affordability remains the primary reason for those individuals that remain uninsured.

Key findings include:

• In 2018, uninsured U.S. working-age adults were disproportionately under age 35, low income and Latino.
• Nearly 50% of uninsured adults may be eligible for Marketplace subsidies or Medicaid.
• 67% of uninsured adults did not visit the Marketplace to examine their coverage options.  Of those, 36% cited affordability concerns for health insurance.
•  Following the ACA individual market subsidies and reforms, those who had tried to buy a plan in the individual market and reported difficulties finding an affordable plan fell from 60% to 34%.  In 2018, 42% of adults reported difficulty finding affordable coverage.
• 62% of adults with individual coverage and 84% with Medicaid rated their coverage as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.”

The brief indicates that federal and state policymakers have various options that could help individuals retain or gain health care coverage within the existing law.

The brief is available here.