Sources of Health Insurance Coverage : A Look at Changes Between 2013 and 2014 from the March 2014 and 2015 Current Population Survey

This paper focuses mainly on changes in health insurance coverage between 2013 and 2014, the year before and after provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) took effect to increase health insurance coverage and reduce the uninsured. The analysis focuses on the nonelderly population, workers ages 18-64, and children. Selected data from prior to 2013 are presented, but it is important to note that this data is not comparable to the more recent 2013-2014 data because of methodological changes in the way in which health insurance data is collected in the Current Population Survey. The prior data are presented in order to provide a sense of direction of prior trends. The percentage of nonelderly individuals in the United States with health insurance increased between 2013 and 2014. In 2014, 88 percent of individuals were covered, up from 84.6 percent in 2013. Twelve percent of individuals under age 65 did not have health insurance at any point in 2014, down from 15.4 percent in 2013. Just over 32 million were uninsured in 2014, down from 41.1 million in 2013. There was no change in the percentage of the nonelderly population with coverage through an employment-based health plan. More people were covered by employment-based coverage in 2014 than in 2013 because of population growth, but the percentage with employment-based health coverage was unchanged at 62 percent. The percentage of workers with employment-based health coverage increased slightly between 2013 and 2014, rising from 70.5 percent to 70.8 percent. The percentage of workers who had no health insurance coverage fell from 17.2 percent in 2013 to 13.3 percent because of an increase in the percentage with health insurance coverage purchased directly from an insurance carrier and because of an increase in Medicaid coverage. Among the entire population, the percentage with coverage purchased directly from an insurance carrier increased from 8.8 percent in 2013 to 12.6 percent in 2014, which represents a corresponding increase of about 10 million people with coverage purchased directly from an insurance carrier. Enrollment in public programs increased, as well, between 2013 and 2014. In 2014, 58.4 million (or 21.7 percent of the nonelderly population) were covered by Medicaid or State Children’s Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP), up from 52 million (or 19.4 percent) in 2013