Dive Brief:
- A new study by the Commonwealth Fund concludes that after the first ACA enrollment period, the U.S. uninsured rate dropped from 20% to 15%, with 9.5 million fewer U.S. adults lacking coverage.
- The biggest coverage gains were seen among young adults aged 19 to 34, with uninsured rates falling from 28% to 18%; Latinos, whose uninsured rate fell from 36% to 23%; and low-income adults, whose rate dropped from 35% to 24%.
- When states expanded eligibility for Medicaid, uninsured rates for low-income adults fell meaningfully; meanwhile, in states that didn't expand Medicaid, uninsured rates for people under the poverty level were double those of states that did expand coverage.
Dive Insight:
The report suggests that the ACA met many of its initial goals, substantially increasing coverage among the groups it was created to help. For example, 63% of adults with new coverage through the marketplaces or Medicaid were previously uninsured, the study found. It's also noteworthy that younger, healthier adults made up a large portion (42%) of new Medicaid enrollees. By design, however, it's done nothing to decrease the number of middle class Americans who can't afford the ACA, aren't eligible for a subsidy and don't get employer-based coverage. Arguably, this is the next front for policymakers to address.