Over the last 10 years, the number of uninsured adults in the U.S.--those ages 18 to 64--has steadily increased, and according to 2009 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, now sits at just over 21 percent. That represents an increase of nearly three million people from 2008, and likely is a symptom of less employers offering health insurance, reports HealthDay News.
"There was a corresponding decrease in private coverage among adults, from 68.1 percent in 2008 to 65.8 percent in 2009," Robin Cohen, a statistician with the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, told HealthDay. "You can connect the dots."
Overall, the number of uninsured people in the U.S. is now 46.3 million--roughly 15 percent of the nation's total population. Despite such grim figures, however, the CDC did find that coverage for children has increased, primarily due to public plans offered. Just over six million children--or 8.2 percent of people ages 18 and younger--went without insurance according to 2009 data; in 1997, close to 10 million children--or about 14 percent--had no coverage.
Regionally, the Southern and Western portions of the U.S. had the highest percentage of uninsured. Texas had the highest rate of uninsured people at 24.6 percent. At the other end of the spectrum, Massachusetts had the most citizens covered, with only 3.7 percent lacking insurance.
For more information:
- here are the CDC's survey results
- read this HealthDay News piece
- check out this MedPage Today article