What Are the Dangers of Being Uninsured?
Approximately 45 million Americans, or 17 percent of the non-elderly population, lack health insurance. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, the number of uninsured has risen since 2000 due to a decline in employer-sponsored health care and 8 out of 10 uninsured are in working families. For those that lack employment but don’t meet eligibility criteria for government sponsored health care–Medicare and Medicaid–costs in the individual insurance market can be prohibitively high. The average annual premium in 2009 for individuals was almost $3,000 and $6,300 for families, according to America’s Health Insurance Plans.
