Access to Health Care
A record number of adults 18–64 years old are uninsured
CDC Vital Signs offers recent data on the important health topics of key diseases, conditions, or risk factors. Data is gathered from CDC's national monitoring systems to communicate our data in important areas of public health, and the ways people can increase their health, prevent or control disease.
New 2010 estimates show that the number of Americans without health insurance is growing, affecting middle-income Americans as well as those living in poverty. About 50 million adults 18–64 years old had no health insurance for at least some of the past 12 months. People in all income brackets have been affected, not just adults living in poverty, according to a 2009 survey. In the past few years, the number of adults aged 18–64 who went without health insurance for at least part of the past 12 months increased by an average of 1.1 million per year. About half of those additional adults were middle-income.* Adults without consistent health insurance are more likely to skip medical care because of cost concerns, which can lead to poorer health, higher long-term health care costs, and early death.
*About $43,000–$65,000 household income for a household of four
Learn about your role in expanding access to health care.
Contact Us:
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
1600 Clifton Rd
Atlanta, GA 30333 - 800-CDC-INFO
(800-232-4636)
TTY: (888) 232-6348 - cdcinfo@cdc.gov