Changes in Health Insurance Coverage in the United States, 2014
These figures describe the health insurance coverage changes that occurred during the 2014 calendar year, the first year of the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) coverage expansion provisions. These provisions included the launch of the health insurance marketplaces in all states and the optional Medicaid expansion adopted by 26 states and the District of Columbia in 2014.
Overall, the number of uninsured Americans declined considerably over the course of 2014. However, many Americans continued to experience short spells of uninsurance or other changes in their coverage situation over the course of the year. Compared to Medicaid and individual market coverage, employer-sponsored insurance continued to be the most stable form of coverage in 2014.
To determine the changes in health insurance coverage in the first year of the ACA, CHRT analyzed data from the household component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). MEPS is a federal survey that measures the cost and use of health care and asks respondents to identify the type(s) of health insurance coverage they had each month, if any.
Figures in this infographic include:
- Number of non-elderly Americans by coverage category from January to December 2014
- Percentage of non-elderly Americans by number of uninsured months during year
- Percentage of non-elderly Americans who started with an maintained the same coverage all year
- Number of uninsured non-elderly Americans by month in 2014
CHRT has also published a brief examining the effects of the ACA on health insurance coverage in Southeast Michigan.