Census: Texas has most residents with no health insurance
Preliminary information from the Census Bureau’s 2008 American Community Survey Data was released on Monday and, for the first time, contained information regarding the population’s health insurance habits.
Preliminary information from the Census Bureau’s 2008 American Community Survey Data was released on Monday and, for the first time, contained information regarding the population’s health insurance habits.
According to the survey – which polled 250,000 addresses per month, or approximately 3 million per year, and included health insurance questions for the first time in its history – Texas had the highest percentage of people who did not have health insurance, coming in at 24.1 percent.
On the other end of the spectrum, Massachusetts – which has laws implemented that require its citizens to be enrolled in some type of health care plan – had the lowest percentage of people without insurance at 4.1 percent. Similarly, Massachusetts also had the lowest rate of children without insurance at only 2.1 percent. Nevada had the highest rate of children without health insurance at 20.2 percent.
Additionally, the survey found that the amount of workers commuting by themselves to work had dropped, falling from 76.1 percent in 2007 to 75.5 percent in 2008. Twenty-two states also saw a decline in car-bound commuters, most in states with higher traffic congestion such as Maryland, Texas, and Washington.
While many of the significant changes were attributed in lifestyle changes brought about by the recession, the reduction in car traffic held the potential to benefit consumers’ auto insurance by putting fewer cars on the road, and therefore reducing the risk of accidents occurring.
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Posted: September 22, 2009
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