The rate of workers with employer-sponsored health insurance plans continues to decline, while the percentage of individuals with public health insurance coverage is increasing, according to a new report from the Employee Benefit Research Institute.
The report noted that the percentage of nonelderly (under 65) individuals with health insurance increased to 82 percent in 2011, but only 58.4 percent of that demographic had work-based coverage, compared with 58.7 percent in 2010 and 69.3 percent in 2000.
About 22.5 percent of the nonelderly population, or 59.9 million individuals, had insurance coverage through public programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare. The analysis also found that in 2011:
- 71.8 percent of nonelderly individuals in families that were headed by a full-time, full-year worker had employer-based coverage, compared with 34.2 percent of individuals in families headed by part-time or seasonal workers; and
- 66.9 percent of whites had employer-sponsored coverage, compared with 46.7 percent of blacks and 38.8 percent of Hispanics.
