New statistics released by the U.S. Census have shown that many Californians are going without health insurance, as almost one in every five did not have this coverage within the last three years.
This is one of the highest rates of uninsured individuals in the country. According to the census, from 2008 through 2010, 18.9 percent of the residents of California – nearly 7 million people – did not have any form of healthcare coverage. The same census showed that the national average during that same period was 15.8 percent.
California found itself within the top seven states with the highest percentage of residents who did not have health insurance. Texas led the nation with 24.8 percent of its residents being uninsured, but it was followed by New Mexico’s 21.8 percent, Florida’s 20.7 percent, Nevada’s 20 percent, Arizona’s 19.1 percent, and Georgia’s 19 percent, before California.
The results of the census also indicated that the lack of insurance is a growing issue both in the state of California and across the country. It was greatly influenced by the number of companies who had to lay off their employees and/or cut back on the health benefits that they were able to offer their workers throughout the economic downturn.
For example, in California, the rate of uninsured individuals in 2007 to 2008 was 17.8 percent, but this rose to 19.4 percent in 2009 to 2010.
Equally, across the country, the 14.8 percent in 2007 to 2008 increased to 16.2 percent by 2009 to 2010.
