The USA is the world’s only large wealthy nation that doesn’t provide residents with universal health coverage. Though the U.S. is home to most of the world’s top hospitals and medical research institutions, there are tens of hundreds of thousands of Americans who wouldn’t have medical health insurance.
Though the uninsured rate has fallen considerably within the last decade – largely as a result of provisions of the Reasonably priced Care Act – greater than 23 million working age adults lack medical health insurance. Americans without coverage are less more likely to receive preventative care or treatment for chronic conditions – and diseases or accidents that require hospitalization are sometimes financially ruinous. Several studies indicate that just about two-thirds of private bankruptcies within the nation are as a result of medical bills that may’t be paid. (Here’s a have a look at the most costly medical treatments in America.)
Many Americans receive insurance coverage through their job. Those whose employers don’t offer medical health insurance, and who usually are not eligible for Medicare or Medicaid, will typically need to pay for insurance out of pocket – and plenty of uninsured Americans cite the high cost of insurance as the explanation they go without it.
Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 24/7 Tempo identified the U.S. counties with the worst medical health insurance coverage. Counties and county equivalents are ranked by the share of the adult population under age 65 who’re uninsured.
Among the many counties on this list, uninsured rates range from about 34% to over 50%. For context, 12.3% of the U.S. population between the ages of 19 and 65 are uninsured.
The overwhelming majority of counties on this list are in states that didn’t expand Medicaid coverage. Under the ACA, states were offered federal money to increase Medicaid coverage to those with incomes as much as 138% of the poverty level. Nonetheless, 12 states have opted to not expand Medicaid, including Georgia, South Dakota, and Texas – which between them are home to 37 of the 50 counties on this list. Here’s a have a look at America’s best health care system.
Click here to see counties with the worst health care coverage
Click here to read our detailed methodology
