While only 5.2 percent of children were uninsured in 2017, many children that year remained in families with challenges obtaining health insurance coverage and paying medical bills, according to a new analysis from the Urban Institute.
For the analysis, researchers examined changes in the share of children in families who reported challenges paying medical bills between 2013, prior to implementation of ACA coverage expansions, and 2017 using the CDC's National Health Interview Survey.
Seven findings:
1. The share of children in families with problems paying medical bills decreased by about 20 percent between 2013 and 2017.
2. About 13 million children (nearly 17 percent) remained in a family with problems affording medical care in 2017.
3. Children who lived in families with incomes at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level were "more than twice as likely" as children in higher-income families to live in families with problems paying medical bills.
4. In 2016 and 2017, about 9.2 million children who lived in families with incomes at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level were in families with problems paying medical bills.
5. Eighty percent of children in families with incomes at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level and problems paying medical bills had an uninsured person or health issues in their family.
6. Children were more likely to have an uninsured family member in 2017 than to be uninsured that year (19.4 percent vs. 5.2 percent).
7. Most children in families with incomes at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level and problems paying medical bills also experienced other financial hardships, including family worries about paying monthly bills, rent or housing costs.
The findings suggest "children remained vulnerable to the financial insecurity associated with family challenges obtaining coverage and affording medical care," Jennifer Haley, an author of the report, concluded.
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