Health Affairs
Web Exclusive
April 3, 2002
By John Holahan and Mary Beth Pohl
Abstract:
The number of uninsured Americans fell in 2000 for the second consecutive year. The reduction has been attributed to the continued expansion of employer-sponsored insurance. However, the increase in employer coverage among adults was offset by declines of other types of coverage. For children, increases in public coverage plus the growth in employer-sponsored insurance led to the reduction in the number of uninsured children. Over the longer period (1994-2000), one of great economic growth, the uninsurance rate was essentially the same at the end as at the beginning. The rate of employer-sponsored insurance increased sharply, so that more people had employer coverage. However, these increases were offset by reductions in other forms of coverage, particularly Medicaid and state-sponsored insurance and private nongroup coverage, so the overall rate of uninsurance did not change.
And from the article:
This analysis examines a period of great prosperity. As of this writing, the nation was in a recession, and there is concern that the number of uninsured persons will rise sharply.