Friday, December 19, 2008

Uninsured Rates in California Went Down in 2007

By Ethan Kalvin

A year ago, our nation's economic situation was almost the polar opposite of today. While the economy was slowly expanding, unemployment rates remained low.

The healthy economy in 2007 did produce some positive stats according to a survey conducted by the UCLA Center for Health Policy. The survey found that the number of uninsured in California was lower in 2007 than in 2005.

In 2007 the uninsured rate decreased to 19.5 percent versus 20.2 percent in 2005, as reported by the Sacramento Bee. Though that's not a significant change, it is clearly an improvement which can be attributed to the number of people covered with group health insurance.

Of course, it sure seems odd to hear about a healthy economy these days, even if it was only as recent as last year. The higher rates of unemployment and the downturn of the economy were the likely factors that cause the uninsured rate to increase.

E. Richard Brown, the lead author of the UCLA survey stated: "We're looking at the final year of an economic expansion (2007), and yet the gains in coverage were small. If the employer-based system can't increase health insurance in good times, how will they do it in bad?" Now that's some fodder for thought.

About the Author:

No comments: