December 15, 2008 - Nearly a fifth of all Californians under age 65 were without health insurance for all or some of 2007, according to a policy brief drawing on comprehensive new data released today from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.
Using new data from the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), the policy brief's authors found that/ 6.4 million Californians were without any health insurance coverage for all or some of 2007, the most recent year for which comprehensive, state-wide data is available.
This number represents 19.5% of all Californians under age 65, which is slightly lower than the uninsured rate of 20.2% in 2005. However, the gains were small and are now likely to be reversed by the current recession, noted the authors of the brief, Nearly 6.4 Million Californians Lacked Health Insurance in 2007.
"We're looking at the final year of an economic expansion and yet the gains in coverage were small," said E. Richard Brown, lead author of the policy brief. "If the employer-based system can't increase health insurance in good times, how will they do it in bad? The answer is: they can't. Only comprehensive health care reform will change the equation."
In 2003, the state's unemployment rate rose to 6.8%, which was a main driver of the decline in employment-based insurance from 56.4% in 2001 to 53.8% in 2003.
Today in California the statewide unemployment rate is more than 8% and predicted to grow higher.
"It suggests we are now in for an even more severe decline in employment-based insurance than in 2003," said Shana Alex Lavarreda, a co-author of the report.
Funded by grants from The California Endowment and The California Wellness Foundation, the policy brief draws upon the latest comprehensive data from CHIS, the largest state health survey in the nation. That data was collected from more that 50,000 Californians, including adults, teenagers and children, on a range of health topics.
"Our current system of health coverage locks too many families out," said Robert K. Ross, M.D., president and CEO of The California Endowment. "We desperately need a system that ensures all Californians have access to health coverage regardless of health status, income and employment."
Easily-searchable CHIS data on un-insurance and other topics by state, region and county can be found at: ask.chis.ucla.edu.
"This policy brief is another example of the critical information that the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research is able to provide through analysis of data from the California Health Interview Survey," said Gary L. Yates, president and CEO of The California Wellness Foundation. "It is difficult to overestimate the relevance of this data source in times like these when so many Californians lack adequate health coverage."
The California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) is the nation's largest state health survey and one of the largest health surveys in the United States.
The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research (CHPR) is one of the nation’s leading health policy research centers and the premier source of health policy information for California. UCLA CHPR improves the public’s health through high quality, objective, and evidence-based research and data that informs effective policymaking. UCLA CHPR is the home of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) and is part of the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health and affiliated with the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.
The California Endowment, a private, statewide health foundation, was established in 1996 to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians.
The California Wellness Foundation is an independent, private foundation created in 1992 with a mission to improve the health of the people of California by making grants for health promotion, wellness education and disease prevention.