The U.S. health insurance system is undergoing great upheaval, which combined with the troubled economy of the past several years is clearly affecting health insurance coverage in the country. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index data reveal that more Americans lack healthcare today than did four years ago. Groups that were already among the least likely to have coverage — Hispanics, low-income Americans, and blacks — have become even more likely to be uninsured. Meanwhile, seniors, most of whom qualify for Medicare, and high-income Americans not only remain among the least likely to lack coverage, but also have not seen their access decline in recent years.
The clear outlier is young adults. The percentage of Americans aged 18 to 25 who are uninsured has been declining since the fourth quarter of 2010. This decrease has coincided with the implementation of a provision of the new healthcare law that allows this age group to stay on their parents’ plans.
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via More Americans Uninsured in 2011.