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Currently,18 million more people are enrolled in health insurance coverage than there were in 2013, indicating that the Affordable Care Act is working to solve the problem of the uninsured. However, there are still 9.1 percent of Americans that do not have coverage, which speaks to what is not working well and the unlikelihood that the number can decrease much lower.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Center For Health Statistics report that was published in September, 2016 – “From January through March 2016, the percentage of persons of all ages that were uninsured at the time of interview was 8.6% (27.3 million). The decrease of 0.5 percentage points from the 2015 uninsured rate of 9.1% (28.6 million) was not statistically significant. About 21.3 million fewer persons lacked health insurance coverage in the first 3 months of 2016 compared with 2010 (48.6 million or 16.0%)”.

States across the country are still not embracing the Obama administrations requests to expand their Medicaid coverage, thus leaving millions of poor Americans without affordable options. In addition, the marketplace created for uninsured folks state by state is struggling across the country. Many insurers are choosing to drop out while others are increasing their prices. The uncertainty of the upcoming presidentially election is also causing some havoc in the marketplace. The republicans have vowed to repeal the Affordable Care Act if given the chance.

Having affordable health care seems to be an unpredictable commodity. Peace of mind knowing that you and your loved ones have adequate coverage really is priceless. Be sure you understand your coverage and ask questions if you are unsure of your exact needs.

 

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Center For Health Statistics