Summary
Many California workers are at risk of losing their employer-sponsored health coverage when they lose their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this data brief, authors from UC Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education and UCLA Center for Health Policy Research examine which types of health insurance, if any, the workers most at risk of job loss had prior to this crisis.
Using data from the 2018 American Community Survey, the authors analyze workers in industries at highest risk of job losses due to the economic fallout related to the coronavirus pandemic and, within those industries, front-line occupations that are likely to be the first to experience job loss.
Industries studied include restaurants and bars; select retail industries; hotels and other lodging; amusement, gambling, and recreation; performing arts, sports, and museums; landscaping and building services; select other services; employment services; air transportation; and select private passenger transportation. The analysis excludes independent contractors because they are not offered health coverage through their own jobs. The industries studies in this brief accounted for approximately 16 percent of the California workforce in 2018.
Findings: Authors estimate that for every 100,000 California workers losing their jobs due to the pandemic, up to 67,000 workers, spouses, and children are at risk of losing job-based coverage.
