About seven million nonelderly California residents lacked health insurance in 2010, according to a study by the California HealthCare Foundation, the Ventura County Star reports. CHCF publishes California Healthline.
The number of uninsured California residents in 2010 was higher than any other state, according to the study.
The study was based on census data and focused on 2008 through 2010.
Key Findings
The study found that six million adults in California younger than age 65 and one million children lacked health insurance in 2010.
In the three years studied, an average of 21% of California's nonelderly population was uninsured, the eighth highest average nationally. Texas had the highest percentage of uninsured residents at 27.3%.
The study also found that in 2010, 23.7% of working Californians were uninsured, compared with the national average of 19.6%.
According to the study:
- Individuals who earned less were more likely to lack insurance; and
- Nearly one in five individuals with family incomes of between $50,000 and $75,000 lacked insurance.
Industry Expert Weighs In
Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access, said there have been "some disturbing trends not just over years but over decades of a gradual erosion of employer-based coverage and public programs picking up some but not all of the slack."
He said that the federal health reform law could help extend medical coverage to two-thirds of California's uninsured residents (Kisken, Ventura County Star, 12/30/11).