Who is really uninsured

Only about 30 percent of the uninsured remain so for more than a year, approximately 16 percent for two years, and less than 2. About half are uninsured for six months or less. Notably, because health insurance is too often tied to employment, the working poor who cycle in and out of the job market also cycle in and out of health insurance.

But it does mean that we might be able to deal with this problem in a much more targeted way, rather than having a huge and expensive new government program. That means ending regulations, like community rating, that increase the cost of insurance for younger and healthier workers; eliminating costly mandated benefits; and creating more competition by allowing people to purchase insurance across state lines.

That means changing the tax treatment of health insurance. Workers should receive a standard deduction, a tax credit, or, better still, large Health Savings Accounts HSAs for the purchase of health insurance, regardless of whether they receive it through their job or purchase it on their own.

The same is true with health care reform. Live Now. Furthermore, even those who can afford coverage cannot always get it. AHIP found that 72 percent of applications for health insurance were eventually approved, while the rest were withdrawn, not processed, or denied for medical or non-medical reasons.

And of those who got coverage, 11 percent had to pay a higher rate than requested. The National Review Institute writes : "More than half of the uninsured are between 18 and 34 years of age, a group which has relatively few expensive health issues and for whom self-insuring paying their own medical bills makes sense.

Is this younger group uninsured by choice? KFF said young people lack insurance for a variety of reasons : "Many low-income young adults lack access to affordable private coverage since few are full-time students or full-time employees, few have jobs that offer employer coverage, and few have access to coverage through their parents.

Similarly, the Institute of Medicine reports that "adults who decline offers of [employer-sponsored insurance] … are more likely to be in poor health with high-cost medical conditions.

Claim: Many of the uninsured already are eligible for public coverage. These were disproportionately children — 6. NIHCM posits a number of possible explanations: People may be unaware of the programs or not know how to enroll in them; they may experience administrative hurdles to enrolling or staying in the program; or they may fear the stigma of public assistance.

Some states also periodically institute CHIP enrollment caps, which may keep eligible people out of public programs. Utah, Georgia and Florida all had caps in Claim: The uninsured get billions of dollars worth of health care.

The figure also covers people who were uninsured for any part of the year, many of whom may have been covered by insurance for the remainder of the year. A study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found a slightly higher amount of uncompensated care. The uninsured still receive much less medical care and consume fewer medical resources than the insured. Some, perhaps 6 million, are illegal immigrants who would not receive coverage under any proposal now being considered.

Do these amount to half the total, as former Sen. The primary function of uninsured motorist coverage is to pay medical bills after a car accident with an uninsured driver. If you have good health insurance, you may not feel you need UM coverage. But if you have a high deductible health plan and would pay a large amount of money for a hospitalization, UM might be attractive. UM is a way to cover car accident injuries without paying co-insurance, copays and health insurance deductibles.

Do you have other insurance to cover car damage? In states where uninsured motorist property damage coverage is available, you may not need it. Collision insurance will also cover damage to your car if someone else hits it, and it will cover a wide variety of circumstances, not just an uninsured driver. Does your state have a lot of drivers without insurance? Mississippi has the highest rate of uninsured drivers Mississippi A hit-and-run accident is typically defined as a car accident where the driver leaves the scene of the accident without exchanging insurance or contact information.

A hit-and-run can occur between:. A hit-and-run is generally covered under two uninsured motorist coverage types:. If your state allows UMPD coverage for hit-and-run accidents, there may be a deductible.

UMPD only pays in certain cases, but it may come with a lower deductible than what you chose for a collision deductible. Stacked insurance is when you make claims on two uninsured motorist policies. Both policies must be in your name.

Some states, like Connecticut, have exceptions. States such as Georgia offer you a choice. You would make a claim under your uninsured motorist bodily injury UMBI coverage for your medical expenses and your uninsured motorist property damage UMPD coverage, if you have it, for damage to your car. Then you would file a claim with your own car insurance company under your underinsured motorist bodily injury UIMBI to cover additional expenses.

Your vehicle is parked in a public parking garage. In this hit-and-run scenario, you would file a claim under your UMPD coverage if your state allows it. In some states, uninsured motorist coverage will also cover your car damage.