| Young People
About 55 percent of the uninsured are under age 35. They often feel they can go without insurance because they may not see an immediate need due to good health, and their earnings may be consumed by necessities like housing, food, and childcare.
Yet, from an insurer’s point of view, this population is eminently insurable at quite reasonable rates. In this case, federal assistance in the form of a tax credit would help them afford health insurance. In addition, creating products like Health Savings Accounts which have lower premiums and making tax credits available so that the individual or family has the immediate benefit of a cash contribution in their HSA account would provide immediate advantages for young families and individuals.
Source: Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, 2008
Children
About 11 percent of children in America went without health insurance in the past year. Of those who are uninsured, almost 75 percent of them are eligible for coverage under Medicare or the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). This means that almost 2 million children who are eligible for coverage under government programs do not enroll.
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