Abstract
Geoffrey D. Paulin and Elizabeth M. Dietz
(1995) "Health Insurance Coverage For Families With
Children: Findings From The Consumer Expenditure Survey," Monthly
Labor Review, August 1995, 13-23.
Note: This work is substantially abridged. For a complete
version, see Monthly Labor Review, August 1995, pp. 13-23.
The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do
not reflect the policies of the Bureau of Labor Statistics
(BLS) or the views of other BLS staff members.
Health insurance coverage is important in the maintenance of
good health for families with children. Cunningham and
Monheit (1990, p. 78) find children in families with no
coverage are "at a disadvantage regarding access to,
quality of, and continuity of health care." Kasper
(1987) finds uninsured children are least likely to have seen
a doctor in the past year, even for immunization or general
check-up (tables 4 and 7). Preventive care is important for
children, who are prone to illness.
However, health care costs have risen substantially in recent
years. From 1989-94, the Consumer Price Index for medical
care increased 41.3 percent, compared with 18.2 percent for
all other items. In 1993, the Nation's costs rose 7.8
percent from 1992 (HHS News 1994). Paulin and Weber (1995)
suggest that as a result of these increases, direct costs of
care are shifting from business and government to families,
thus affecting expenditures for nonhealth items.
Meanwhile, in 1992, more than 8 million American children had
no health coverage (U.S. Bureau of the Census 1994). While
many of the poorest families received Medicaid benefits
(Cunningham and Monheit, pp. 77-78), the percentage of
children without public or private coverage grew by more than
40 percent between 1977 and 1987 (Ibid., pp. 80-81).
This study identifies families that have full, partial, and
no health insurance coverage. It examines the characteristics
of each insurance group, policies held, health expenditure
patterns, and relationships between demographics and the
probability of being insured.
Last Modified Date: July 19, 2008