The number of uninsured Americans rose by nearly 6 million as the recession intensified during the last 12 months, according to new figures released on Thursday by the White House.  As Sen. Bernie Sanders said after President Obama's speech to a joint session of Congress, "The reality is that, if we do not act now, the likelihood is that more and more Americans will lose their health insurance and health care costs will double within eight years. "  The White House figures updated data contained in a new Census Bureau report saying that, between 2000 and 2008, the number of uninsured Americans rose by 7.9 million. The percentage of people covered by private insurance dropped to 67 percent, and 29 percent are covered by such public programs as Medicaid, children's health insurance, the Veterans Administration or the military.  While only 8 percent of individuals in households with incomes more than $75,000 lack insurance, 24.5 percent of individuals in households with incomes below $25,000 have not coverage, the Census Bureau said. 

Vermonters are generally better off than the nation as a whole with 90.8 percent of people covered in 2008. According to the Census Bureau, 71 percent of Vermonters are covered by private insurance and 35 percent by government (note that people can be covered in part by both).

Read the new census report here. 

To see the 2008 data for Vermont, click here. 

Summary of key findings from new Census data on Health Insurance coverage in 2008

• The number of U.S. residents who were uninsured increased significantly from 45.7 million in 2007 to 46.3 million in 2008. The fraction without health insurance increased in 2008 to 15.4 percent, up from 15.3 percent in 2007 and from 13.7 percent in 2000.  Between 2000 and 2008, the number of uninsured U.S. residents increased by 7.9 million.

• The percentage of people covered by private insurance declined significantly, from 67.5 percent in 2007 to 66.7 percent in 2008.  This decline is consistent with recent trends and was entirely driven by a decrease in the fraction of individuals with employment-based insurance.  Between 2000 and 2008, the fraction of U.S. residents with private insurance declined by 5.9 percentage points, from 72.6 percent to 66.7 percent.

• The percentage of people covered by private employer sponsored insurance fell from 59.3 percent in 2007 to 58.5 percent in 2008. This represents a 5.7 percentage point decline from the fraction in 2000 (64.2 percent).

• The fraction with public health insurance through Medicaid / CHIP, Medicare, or the military increased substantially, from 27.8 percent in 2007 to 29.0 percent in 2008. Most of this increase was attributable to a rise in the fraction with Medicaid/CHIP.

• Between 2007 and 2008, the fraction of non-elderly adults without health insurance increased significantly, from 19.6 percent in 2007 to 20.3 percent in 2008. This represents an increase of 3.1 percentage points from the rate of 17.2 percent in 2000. 

• The fraction of children without health insurance declined significantly from 11.0 percent in 2007 to 9.9 percent in 2008.  Both the number and the fraction of children without health insurance are at their lowest levels since the Census began collecting comparable health insurance data in 1987.

• The fraction of non-Hispanic Whites and of Asians who were uninsured increased significantly, while there was no significant change for Blacks and a significant decrease among Hispanics. Large gaps persist between these groups, with 30.7 percent of Hispanics, 19.1 percent of Blacks, 17.6 percent of Asians, and 10.8 percent of non-Hispanic Whites uninsured in 2008.

• Low-income households remain less likely to have health insurance. The fraction of people in households with incomes of less than $25,000 who were uninsured was 24.5 percent versus 8.2 percent among people in households with incomes of $75,000 or more.