The U.S. uninsured rate hits 8%, a post-pandemic high

The latest CDC data indicate that the percentage of Americans without medical insurance has climbed to more than 8% this year, following a streak of record lows during the pandemic.

According to the agency’s quarterly National Health Interview Survey, published this week, more than 27M Americans were without health insurance as of March 2024, implying an 8.2% uninsured rate compared to 7.7% a year ago.

More than a million working-age adults and 700,000 kids younger than 18 lost health coverage over the period, leading to the highest uninsured rate since the pandemic.

The national uninsured rate was hovering at 10% before the public health emergency, which required a pause in Medicaid eligibility reviews and expanded the benefits program jointly funded by the states and the federal government.

However, the state-level redeterminations resumed in April 2023, and as a result, nearly 25M Americans had lost their Medicaid coverage as of August 1, healthcare policy organization KFF has said.