Number of Uninsured in U.S. Rises as Workers Lose Jobs and Health Insurance

More Americans went without health coverage last year as unemployment remained high and even those who kept their jobs lost health insurance benefits because of rising costs, according to a Gallup poll released Tuesday.

The poor economy and rising health care costs are weakening the job-based health insurance system that is the most common source of coverage for Americans. Last year, the percentage of people with workplace health benefits fell to 44.6 percent from 45.8 percent in 2010. The proportion has declined each year since 2008, when Gallup first began tracking the data. Job-based health insurance coverage declined last year for full-time part-time, and self-employed workers, the survey says.

The ranks of the uninsured also have risen overall for four straight years. Gallup reported last month that 17.1 percent of Americans have no health insurance, up from 16.8 percent in 2010.

Joblessness, lower incomes and the cost of health care are to blame, according to Gallup.

Two factors appear to be driving up the percentage of uninsured Americans. First, more Americans were unemployed or underemployed in 2011 than in 2008. Second, fewer employees had health insurance from their employer, which may be because employers no longer offered it or the cost was too high for employees to afford.

Comments

[ScottinSanford]

06:13 PM on 05/14/2012

I've been self-employed for close to twenty years and have been turned down for health insurance in the past. It's disheartening to say the least. When you turn 50 and you have pre-existing conditions it seems like no one wants to insure you.

Like Mark says there are some solutions out there. www.mymedssavingscard.com offers a free discount drug card, you'll find the same at a number of different sites as well. Cards like these can make a difference for families and individuals who are uninsured or underinsured. It's not a long term answer and it's not going to replace the benefits of having an insurance plan but it can help people that need help now.

[CAP GUY]

12:15 PM on 04/11/2012

As an outreach coordinator, with Community Assistance Program (CAP), we see these things first hand and try to reach out to those in need. We give away free discount prescription cards to help those that are uninsured and underinsured. We don't try to sell you any other products or services. Go to www.freecapcard.com and download a free card today and help us get the word out!

Thanks

[Mark Steven]

09:27 AM on 02/15/2012

Hard to resist playing the blame game and pointing fingers to try to gain a political edge. Aside from all of that, there are some partial solutions. There are free prescription discount cards at GetMedcard.com and dozens of others...and there are health care discount cards. These things are not the complete answer, but can serve as stop-gap measures to help those who are paying retail prices.

[johntoinvent]

03:20 PM on 02/14/2012

Republican Health Care is that if your uninsured 'you just need to die'

[OldTulsan]

01:47 PM on 02/14/2012

The Deficit Commission is considerin­g the eliminatio­n of the tax deduction for job-based health insurance:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/28/health-care-tax-break-deficit_n_788852.html
Job-Based Health Care Threatened

"WASHINGTO­N — Job-based health care benefits could wind up on the chopping block if President Barack Obama and congressio­nal Republican­s get serious about cutting the deficit.

Budget proposals from leaders in both parties have urged shrinking or eliminatin­g tax breaks that help make employer health insurance the leading source of coverage in the nation and a middle-cla­ss mainstay.

The idea isn't to just raise revenue, economists say, but finally to turn Americans into frugal health care consumers by having them face the full costs of their medical decisions.

[snip]

Repealing the tax break would raise several hundred billion dollars a year, depending on how it's done. Many economists believe employers would boost pay if they didn't provide health care..."

Anyone who thinks employers would boost pay to compensate is delusional­.

[Clownwhisper]

05:04 AM on 06/29/2012

The problem with republicans is they think that only THEY should get health care coverage for little to no money.

It costs money to take care of our nation, get used to it.

[Kare360]

01:02 PM on 02/14/2012

No matter your political leaning, issues like access to care and cost will continue to grow based on several factors I won't go into here. While it is important to debate policy, we also need experts working to help people on an individual level because one size will not fit all. At Kare360, we have seen a lot of these problems coming for years and have designed a very affordable personal concierge service to help people deal with them. For folks who may be losing their insurance through their employer, we help by providing them with personalized options for their unique situation. We aren't brokers, so we aren't going to try and sell you a policy you may or may not need. Our goal is to give you options that fit you and let you pick the one that helps your family the most. We are in it for people, not policies.

[Tom Hendricks]

12:39 PM on 02/14/2012

What I never understood was corporate resistance to ending their health care programs and turning it over to the government. Why would any corporate leader want the burden of health care safety net, on his company? Yet they collectively stood up and opposed it. I would oppose them as leaders if I was a share holder.
Those CEO's that aren't bright enough to allow the government to handle their employees health safety net seem to be bad businessmen to me.
Support a National Hiring Day and bring back jobs and the economy in one day.

[mochaview]

12:07 AM on 02/15/2012

You can't understand it because you're a decent person. Most CEO's aren't. I've worked for a few so I've seen it up close and personal. They have severe mental problems. I'm dead serious, they lack empathy at the most basic levels.

They don't want to give up healthcare to gov't control because there's a money making opportunity there. We Americans don't fight back, don't arm ourselves with knowledge and rely on regular media too much. It will change. More of us are on medicare and see nonsense and want to change it. As more intelligent people are on food stamps/medicaid we can see the disparity between that experience, how we used to live life on private insurance and what's reported to the masses.

[Hannibal55]

12:33 PM on 02/14/2012

And the republicans will brand the desire of Americans to seek some kind of remedy from the government as due to an entitlement mentality.

Really?

In the republican world, only those with a LOT of money are entitled to life saving health care!

[anothermoderate]

12:29 PM on 02/14/2012

Yet gap between the haves & the have nots continues to grow.

[Kare360]

05:12 PM on 02/14/2012

Knowledge and options can help close that gap. I work everyday to find answers for people and empower them so they can make their money go farther and find solutions to their struggles.