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SALT LAKE CITY — Changes to the state's Children's Health Insurance Plan have been successful in driving up enrollment, but overall, more than 300,000 Utahns are still uninsured.
Data released this week by the Utah Department of Health indicate that 301,700 Utahns — or 10.6 percent of the total population — lacked health insurance in 2010. The numbers represent a slight improvement from 2009, when 314,300, or 11.2 percent of the population had no health care coverage.
"Despite the fact that nearly 13,000 fewer Utahns were uninsured last year, it's tough to take any comfort in these data," said UDOH Director Dr. David Patton. "The state's uninsured rate has held relatively steady over the past several years, which is an indication that we must continue to pursue policies and strategies, such as the Utah Health Insurance Exchange, that will provide our citizens with access to high-quality, affordable health care."
Despite the fact that nearly 13,000 fewer Utahns were uninsured last year, it's tough to take any comfort in these data.
–Dr. David Patton
Extending open enrollment throughout the year, which happened in 2008, has allowed more children to benefit from available health care coverage, according to new numbers, but thousands of eligible children (whose parents' incomes are up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level) are still not enrolled. More than 12 percent of kids in Utah remain uninsured.
The largest percent of uninsured, 28.6 percent, are among young adults, ages 19 to 26.
Among adults who are eligible for coverage under the state's Primary Care Network (ages 19-64, with an income up to 150 percent of the federal poverty level) 39.9 percent did not have health insurance coverage.
And self-employed adults, ages 19-64, had an uninsured rate of 23.9 percent. Of part-time working adults, 18.8 percent were uninsured in 2010.
Officials say the change in numbers from 2009 to 2010 was "not statistically significant."
UDOH tracks insurance coverage annually, via the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. The state- based, random-digit-dialed telephone survey is done in place of the former Utah Healthcare Access Survey, which was discontinued in 2008. Insurance coverage and health care access questions from the initial survey were added to the BRFSS to keep track of local trends in health care.
The BRFSS is representative of the Utah population living in households with land line telephones and researchers have said a more appropriate statistic for the number of uninsured, would be closer to 400,000.
Email:wleonard@ksl.com
