Indicator 12: Health Insurance
Rationale: Health insurance coverage is important because it increases the likelihood that people will get the preventive care and treatment they need to stay healthy. People without insurance incur huge expenses if they need medical care.
About this indicator: The 2008 American Community Survey showed 91.3 percent of Minnesotans had some form of health insurance. 2008 was the first year health insurance coverage was included in the ACS.
The Current Population Survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, has tracked health insurance coverage since 1999. For Minnesota, the percent of Minnesotans covered by health insurance was 92.5 percent in 2000 and 91.3 percent in 2008. The difference is not statistically significant. Nationally, the rate declined from 86.3 percent in 2000 to 84.6 percent in 2008, a statistically significant change.
For comparison: Minnesota had the third-highest rate of health insurance coverage behind Massachusetts, Hawaii and the District of Columbia, but differences among states are not always significant.
The Minnesota Health Care Access Survey conducted by the Minnesota Department of Health is an alternative measure of health insurance coverage. The Health Care Access Survey found that 7.2 percent of Minnesotans did not have health care coverage in 2007.
Sources:
- U.S. Bureau of the Census, http://www.census.gov/
- Minnesota Health Care Access Survey, http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/hpsc/hep/
Related 2002 Milestones indicator:
Local data:
Milestones is a product of the Minnesota State Demographic Center, a division of the Department of Administration