The uninsured rate of young adults is now lower than the same rate among Texans ages 36 to 49. This shift, researchers suggest, is largely due to the ACA’s provision that permits children to stay on their parents’ insurance plan up to the age of 26. Researchers also attributed the rise of insured young adults to the ACA’s requirement of employers to provide workers with affordable health insurance and the robust Texas economy.
The most likely “young invincibles” — insurance nomenclature used to identify young adults who often view health insurance as a nonessential purchase — left uninsured were Hispanics and individuals making less than $16,000 annually.
“For those young adults with the lowest incomes, the ACA coverage solution was an expanded Medicaid program,” said Elena Marks, EHF’s president and CEO and a nonresident health policy fellow at the Baker Institute. “Because Texas has not yet opted to use the federal Medicaid dollars to cover these individuals, it’s likely they’ll remain uninsured.”
More articles on population health:
Geo-mapping identifies hot spots for opioid use in Delaware: 5 study findings
Prince’s death might be linked to counterfeit pills
Epidemiologist resigns, says NC’s health department knowingly misled public
