15.2% uninsured rate called a 'national disgrace'

The Catholic Health Association called the news that 43.6 million Americans lacked health insurance in 2002 a "national disgrace," while the American Hospital Association said, "This nation can and should do better." In a report released this morning, the U.S. Census Bureau said the nation's uninsured rate rose for the fourth straight year to 15.2% of the population in 2002 from 14.6% in 2001, an increase of 2.4 million people. The rise in uninsured was attributed to a decline in the prevalence of employer-sponsored insurance. The percentage of Americans who received health insurance through employers fell to 61.3% in 2002 from 62.6% in 2001. Meanwhile, government-sponsored insurance covered 25.7% of the U.S. population in 2002, up from 25.3% in 2001, largely because of increased Medicaid coverage. The only age group in which the uninsured rate declined was among 18-year-olds and under, where the percentage of uninsured fell to 11.6% in 2002 from 11.7% in 2001, reflecting an expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program. -- by Tony Fong