A recent study published by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) reveals that as of April 2011, the number of workers that were insured with employer-based health coverage fell to 55.8 percent from 56.5 percent in December 2009.
The majority of uninsured employees admitted that they did not have coverage because of cost, which ranged from 70 percent to 90 percent over the December 1995-July 2011 period. These workers also reported that they were not offered employment-based health benefits that amounted to 40 percent from the mid-1990s to 2003, while by mid-2011 it was reduced to 23 percent.
According to the EBRI, employment-based health benefits are the most common type of health insurance for those that are poor and not elderly in the United States. In 2010, 58.7 percent of individuals below age 65 individuals were covered by an employer-based health benefits plan, including 68.6 percent of working people, 35.3 percent of unemployed adults, and 54.8 percent of children.
Starting in the 1980s, the number of individuals without health insurance coverage has been growing mostly due to increasing health benefit costs, which has reduced the number of workers with employer-based coverage.
However, in the late 1990s, the percentage of workers and their families that had employer-based insurance increased and the number of those without health coverage fell. This was partly a result of a strong economy and low unemployment.
Because employment and access to health insurance is connected, the possibility of a worker being
uninsured is linked to the economy's wellbeing and the unemployment rate. Between late 1995 and early 2000, the unemployment rate declined from 5.6 percent to 3.8 percent and the number of workers that lacked health insurance coverage decreased as well.
Uninsured workers were asked why they were not covered. They cited several reasons why they did not have coverage. Most workers said that they did not have coverage due to cost. They may be referring to the cost of employer-based coverage or insurance that they could buy directly from insurance companies. The overall trend in the amount of uninsured workers reporting cost as a reason for not having coverage has been going up since 2008.
Examining health insurance sources along with the rates of uninsured workers on a monthly basis allows for a more precise identification of trend changes and can indicate the effects of recession and unemployment on adjustments in coverage. While the connection regarding health insurance coverage and employment has long been known, the data reveals how unemployment rates can directly alter the percentage of uninsured individuals in the United States.
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