U S C E N S U S B U R E A U

Helping You Make Informed Decisions •1902-2002

Demographic Programs

U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

Employment-Based Health

Insurance: 1997

Household Economic Studies

Issued December 2002

Current

Population

Reports

By 

Shailesh Bhandari

P70-81

INTRODUCTION

Over three-fourths (75.9 percent) of the

employed population in 1997 had health

insurance through their own employer or

another person’s employer.1 Among the

unemployed and those who were not in

the labor force, 33.2 percent and 

45.2 percent, respectively, were covered

by employment-based health insurance

— usually through a spouse or former

employer. Overall, unemployed people

were much more likely to be uninsured

(46.4 percent) than employed people

(14.7 percent) or people not in the labor

force (12.5 percent).2

This report examines the characteristics of

health insurance provided by employers

and some characteristics of the employers

that offer health insurance. Data for this

report were collected

from August to

November of 1997 as

part of the 1996

Survey of Income and

Program Participation

(SIPP) panel wave 5

topical module on

employment-based

health benefits. The

1 The employer offering

the health insurance coverage may be the current

employer or a former

employer. However, we have

this information for own

employer only. That is, we

do not know if another person’s employer is the current

or a former employer. 2 See Figure 1. All statements are statistically significant at the 90-percent

confidence interval.

same topical module for 2001 SIPP panel

was also administered from June 2002 to

September 2002, but data from this topical module are not yet available.

Additional information about labor market

and health insurance status comes from

SIPP core sections on health insurance,

labor force, and employment. People aged

15 and over in approximately 32,000

households were interviewed.

Seventy million of the 131 million

employed people were covered by

their current employer’s plan.

In 1997, nearly 98 million, or 74.4 percent of the 131 million employed population, worked for employers who

offered health insurance to their

employees. Of those 98 million workers,

only 70 million, or 71.5 percent,

Figure 1.

Population, Labor Force Structure, and Health 

Insurance by Current Employer: 1997

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program 

Participation, August-November 1997.

(In millions)

The U.S. civilian 

population — 267.7

People aged 15 and 

over — 208.1

In labor force — 136.8

Employed — 131.3

Current employer offers 

health insurance — 97.7

Covered by current 

employer — 69.8
received health insurance coverage

from their employers (see Figure

1).3

Unemployed people were most

likely to be uninsured.

Types of health insurance and

uninsured rates varied among people of different labor force status.

While 75.9 percent of employed

people had employment-based

health insurance, only 33.2 percent

of the unemployed and 45.2 percent of people not in the labor

force had employment-based

health insurance (see Figure 2).4

Unemployed people were less likely than the employed to have

employment-based health insurance (33.2 versus 75.9 percent)

and more likely to be covered by

public health insurance5 (14.3 versus 2.7 percent) or to be uninsured

(46.4 versus 14.7 percent).

Of the three groups, people not in

the labor force, which includes people covered by Medicare, were least

likely to be uninsured (12.5 percent).6 They also had the highest

rates of privately purchased or military-related health insurance and

public health insurance.7

Figure 3 shows that over half 

(52.2 percent) of the people age 15

and over with employment-based

health insurance were covered by

2 U.S. Census Bureau

3 Some workers in firms offering health

insurance were not eligible for that insurance. See Figure 4, and the text explaining

Figure 4, for details. 4 Those with more than one type of

insurance including employment-based

insurance are included in an “employmentbased” group. 5 Public health insurance includes

Medicaid, Medicare, and other public health

insurance plans. 6 People not in the labor force are those

who are without a job and not actively looking for one. 7 In the SIPP, unlike the CPS, military-related health insurance information for the civilian population is collected and edited,

together with the employment-based health

insurance and privately purchased health

insurance, as a part of private health insurance.

Figure 2.

Types of Health Insurance Among People 15 Years 

Old and Over by Labor Force Status: 1997

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 

August-November 1997. 

(In percent)

Employment-based 

health insurance

Privately purchased 

or military-related 

health insurance

Public health insurance

No health insurance

Employed Unemployed Not-in-labor force

14.7

2.7

6.6

75.9

46.4

14.3

6.1

33.2

12.5

22.0

20.3

45.2

Figure 3.

Sources of Employment-Based Health 

Insurance: 1997

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 

August-November 1997. 

(People age 15 and over with such insurance)

Current employer 52.2%

Previous employer 11.4%

Spouse's employer 26.8%

Other relative's employer 9.5%
their current employer, and over

one-fourth (26.8 percent) were covered by their spouse’s employer. 

Nonparticipation by choice

was more common than lack

of eligibility.

As shown in Figure 4, over onethird (37.1 percent) of nonparticipating workers were not eligible to

participate in their employer’s

health insurance plan (typically

because they were temporary,

worked part-time, or had not completed their probationary period).

Just under one-half (46.4 percent)

of workers chose not to enroll in

their employer’s plan although they

were eligible. Typically, they did

not enroll because they had health

insurance from another source or

the plan was too expensive for

them. Although both men and

women were equally likely to be

ineligible or to be denied coverage,

men were less likely than women

to choose not to be covered by

their employer’s plan.

Education was linked with

health insurance coverage

rates.

For workers not participating in

their employer’s plan, and for

workers whose employer did not

offer health insurance, the likelihood of having health insurance

increases with education level. As

Figure 5 illustrates, people with

higher levels of education were

more likely to have health insurance from a source other than their

own employer. Among workers

who did not complete high school,

47.4 percent with no health insurance offer from their current

employer were uninsured, compared with 23.8 percent of college

graduates. 

U.S. Census Bureau 3

Figure 4.

Why Workers Don't Participate in EmploymentBased Health Insurance: 1997

1 Workers who are not eligible to participate in their employer's plan because of 

job status.

2 Workers who did not participate in their employer's plan by choice.

3 Workers not participating for unknown reason.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, 

August-November 1997. 

(In percent)

All Nonparticipants

Nonparticipating Males

Nonparticipating Females

Other Denied Choice2 3 Ineligible1

Other Denied Choice2 3 Ineligible1

Other Denied Choice2 3 Ineligible1

15.4

37.1

1.1

46.4

19.1

37.2

1.0

42.7

12.6

37.0

1.2

49.3
4 U.S. Census Bureau

Figure 5.

Coverage Status of Nonparticipating Workers: 1997

1 Privately purchased or military-related health insurance.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997. 

(In percent)

Less Than High School

High School Graduate or Some College

College Graduates

Less Than High School

High School Graduate or Some College

College Graduates

No coverage

Public

Private

or military1

Relative's

employer

Spouse's

employer

Previous

employer

No coverage

Public

Private

or military1

Relative's

employer

Spouse's

employer

Previous

employer

No coverage

Public

Private

or military1

Relative's

employer

Spouse's

employer

Previous

employer

No coverage

Public

Private

or military1

Relative's

employer

Spouse's

employer

Previous

employer

No coverage

Public

Private

or military1

Relative's

employer

Spouse's

employer

Previous

employer

No coverage

Public

Private

or military1

Relative's

employer

Spouse's

employer

Previous

employer

23.8

5.0

15.2

2.2

12.3

2.2

50.5

7.7

30.5

1.9

10.6

9.9

38.1

6.1

36.4

7.6

7.2

22.8

21.0

2.5

11.8

16.5

10.5

11.3

47.4

4.7

28.0

8.3

16.5

6.3

36.2

6.3

39.0

2.5

24.7

3.8

EMPLOYER DOES NOT OFFER 

HEALTH INSURANCE

EMPLOYER OFFERS 

HEALTH INSURANCE
HEALTH INSURANCE

OFFERS AND COVERAGES

Workers aged 45 to 64 were

more likely to be offered

health insurance than other

age groups.

Table 1 shows that 74.4 percent of

all workers 15 years old and over

worked for employers who offered

health insurance. Workers 45-64

years old were the most likely and

workers 65 and over were the least

likely to be offered health insurance (76.9 percent and 48.5 percent respectively). 

Blacks were more likely to be

offered health insurance than

other races.

Examining offer rates by race and

Hispanic origin shows that Blacks

were the most likely and Hispanics

were the least likely to be offered

health insurance.8 Among nonHispanic Whites, men were more

likely than women to be offered

health insurance. Among Blacks,

however, women were more likely

than men to be offered health

insurance.

Non-Hispanic Whites were

more likely to be covered by

employment-based health

insurance than Blacks or

Hispanics.

Table 1 also shows that of all

workers whose employer offered

health insurance in 1997, 71.5 percent were covered by employmentbased health insurance. Overall,

non-Hispanic White workers were

more likely to be covered than

Blacks or Hispanics, and men were

more likely to be covered than

women.

Men were more likely to be covered than women in nearly all age,

race, and Hispanic origin groups,

except for Blacks at ages 45 to 64

and for people 65 years old or

over. 

TYPES OF EMPLOYERS

PROVIDING HEALTH

INSURANCE 

Current employers covered

most employed people,

followed by employers of

workers’ spouses.

Current employers were the most

important source of health insurance for employed people, covering 53.2 percent of them. Table 2

shows that men 15 to 44 years old

were more likely to be covered by

this source than women in the

same age group: 55.8 percent

compared with 46.9 percent. The

coverage rate by this source for

men aged 45 to 64 was even higher — 64.7 percent, compared with

54.3 percent for women in that

age group.

Spouses’ employers were also

important providers of health insurance; 16.0 percent of all employed,

12.7 percent of unemployed, and

19.9 percent of those not in the

labor force were covered through

their spouse’s employer in 1997. 

Older people were more likely than

younger people; and, among people aged less than 65, those not

currently working (unemployed or

not in the labor force) were more

likely than those who were

employed to have health insurance

coverage from a previous employer. Among employed workers 65

and over, 13.4 percent were covered by their previous employer,

but only 1.5 percent of employed

people aged 15-44 and 3.7 percent

of employed people aged 45-64

were covered by previous employers. Coverage rates by previous

employers were at least 20 percent

among people 45 and over who

were either unemployed or not in

the labor force. 

People not in the labor force were

more likely than others (employed

or unemployed), and those aged

15 to 44 were more likely than

older people to have health insurance through the employer of a relative (other than spouse). In 1997,

this source covered 30.9 percent

of men and 18.1 percent of women

aged 15 to 44 years old but less

than 1 percent of people older

than 45 who were not in the labor

force. 

Coverage of 2 in every 5

people not in the labor force

was not employment-based.

Although employment-based

health insurance was the major

source of coverage, other sources

were essential to many people,

whether employed or unemployed,

and whether in or not in the labor

force.9 Table 2 shows that, in

1997, only 9.3 percent of

employed people had public, privately purchased, or military-related health insurance, compared

with 42.3 percent of those not in

the labor force.

Across age groups, people aged 65

and over were the most likely to

have health insurance coverage —

essentially because they qualify for

Medicare. Each of the younger age

groups had a lesser chance of

being covered. People age 65 and

over were more likely than

younger people to get health insurance from other than employmentbased sources, such as public

health insurance, privately

U.S. Census Bureau 5

8 Because Hispanics may be of any race,

estimates in this report for Hispanics overlap

slightly with estimates for the Black population. Based on the 1996 Survey of Income

and Program Participation (wave 5), 4.5 percent of the Black population 15 years and

over were of Hispanic origin. 

9 These other sources include privately

purchased or military-related health insurance and public health insurance (Medicare,

Medicaid, and other public health insurance

plans).
6 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 1.

Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage Rates by Age, Sex, Race, and Hispanic

Origin for Employed People: 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic All

employed

total

Offered Covered

Number

Percent of

employees Number Percent of offers

Total .......................................... 131,290 97,721 74.4 69,845 71.5

Ages 15 and over ............................ 131,290 97,721 74.4 69,845 71.5

Male...................................... 70,585 52,632 74.6 40,450 76.9

Female ................................... 60,705 45,088 74.3 29,396 65.2

Ages 15-44 .................................. 87,603 65,301 74.5 45,261 69.3

Male...................................... 47,103 35,142 74.6 26,281 74.8

Female ................................... 40,500 30,159 74.5 18,980 62.9

Ages 45-64 .................................. 39,485 30,380 76.9 23,619 77.7

Male...................................... 21,025 16,330 77.7 13,594 83.2

Female ................................... 18,459 14,049 76.1 10,025 71.4

Ages 65 and over ............................ 4,202 2,040 48.5 965 47.3

Male...................................... 2,457 1,160 47.2 574 49.5

Female ................................... 1,746 880 50.4 391 44.5

Non-Hispanic Whites .......................... 99,664 75,125 75.4 54,142 72.1

Ages 15 and over ............................ 99,664 75,125 75.4 54,142 72.1

Male...................................... 53,804 40,922 76.1 32,027 78.3

Female ................................... 45,860 34,203 74.6 22,114 64.7

Ages 15-44 .................................. 64,284 48,806 75.9 34,245 70.2

Male...................................... 34,613 26,502 76.6 20,282 76.5

Female ................................... 29,671 22,303 75.2 13,963 62.6

Ages 45-64 .................................. 31,731 24,556 77.4 19,087 77.7

Male...................................... 17,048 13,404 78.6 11,258 84.0

Female ................................... 14,683 11,153 76.0 7,829 70.2

Ages 65 and over ............................ 3,649 1,763 48.3 810 45.9

Male...................................... 2,143 1,016 47.4 487 47.9

Female ................................... 1,506 747 49.6 323 43.2

Black . . ....................................... 14,229 11,095 78.0 7,725 69.6

Ages 15 and over ............................ 14,229 11,095 78.0 7,725 69.6

Male...................................... 6,649 5,046 75.9 3,611 71.6

Female ................................... 7,580 6,049 79.8 4,114 68.0

Ages 15-44 .................................. 10,288 7,974 77.5 5,292 66.4

Male...................................... 4,826 3,639 75.4 2,513 69.1

Female ................................... 5,462 4,336 79.4 2,779 64.1

Ages 45-64 .................................. 3,660 2,980 81.4 2,361 79.2

Male...................................... 1,704 1,355 79.6 1,073 79.2

Female ................................... 1,956 1,625 83.1 1,287 79.3

Ages 65 and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281 140 50.0 72 51.5

Male. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 52 43.3 25 (B)

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 89 54.9 47 53.4

Hispanic Origin1 ............................... 12,574 8,060 64.1 5,600 69.5

Ages 15 and over ............................ 12,574 8,060 64.1 5,600 69.5

Male...................................... 7,624 4,848 63.6 3,490 72.0

Female ................................... 4,950 3,212 64.9 2,110 65.7

Ages 15-44 .................................. 9,668 6,118 63.3 4,086 66.8

Male...................................... 5,918 3,717 62.8 2,568 69.1

Female ................................... 3,750 2,401 64.0 1,518 63.2

Ages 45-64 .................................. 2,747 1,870 68.1 1,473 78.7

Male...................................... 1,592 1,082 68.0 893 82.5

Female ................................... 1,155 788 68.3 580 73.5

Ages 65 and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 72 45.3 42 (B)

Male. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 48 42.5 29 (B)

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 24 (B) 13 (B)

B The base for the derived figure is less than 75,000.

1 Because Hispanics may be of any race, data in this report for Hispanics overlap slightly with data for the Black population.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997
U.S. Census Bureau 7

Table 2.

Health Insurance Coverage Types by Age, Sex, and Employment Status: 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

15 years and over 15-44 years 45-64 years 65 years and over

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Total ................................... 208,059 100.0 120,784 100.0 55,211 100.0 32,064 100.0

Employed ............................ 131,290 63.1 87,603 72.5 39,485 71.5 4,202 13.1

Current employer ..................... 69,845 53.2 45,261 51.7 23,619 59.8 965 23.0

Previous employer .................... 3,336 2.5 1,295 1.5 1,479 3.7 562 13.4

Spouse’s employer ................... 21,033 16.0 13,306 15.2 7,323 18.5 404 9.6

Other relative’s employer .............. 5,500 4.2 5,342 6.1 126 0.3 31 0.7

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 8,727 6.6 4,602 5.3 2,601 6.6 1,524 36.3

Public health insurance ............... 3,503 2.7 2,387 2.7 468 1.2 649 15.4

No health insurance .................. 19,345 14.7 15,411 17.6 3,868 9.8 67 1.6

Unemployed .......................... 5,527 2.7 4,445 3.7 970 1.8 112 0.4

Previous employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 708 12.9 485 10.9 199 20.5 24 21.8

Spouse’s employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 702 12.7 485 10.9 209 21.6 7 6.4

Other relative’s employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425 7.7 425 9.6 - - - -

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 339 6.1 233 5.2 54 5.5 52 46.4

Public health insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 790 14.3 672 15.1 89 9.2 28 25.4

No health insurance .................. 2,564 46.4 2,145 48.3 419 43.2 - -

Not in Labor Force .................... 71,241 34.2 28,736 23.8 14,756 26.7 27,749 86.5

Previous employer ................... 11,246 15.8 1,902 6.6 2,938 19.9 6,405 23.1

Spouse’s employer ................... 14,164 19.9 6,137 21.4 4,780 32.4 3,248 11.7

Other relative’s employer .............. 6,799 9.5 6,567 22.9 114 0.8 118 0.4

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 14,482 20.3 2,228 7.8 1,654 11.2 10,600 38.2

Public health insurance ............... 15,672 22.0 5,419 18.9 3,078 20.9 7,176 25.9

No health insurance .................. 8,878 12.5 6,483 22.6 2,193 14.9 202 0.7

Male ................................... 100,491 48.3 60,234 49.9 26,759 48.5 13,498 42.1

Employed ............................ 70,585 70.2 47,103 78.2 21,025 78.6 2,457 18.2

Current employer .................... 40,450 57.3 26,281 55.8 13,594 64.7 574 23.4

Previous employer ................... 2,209 3.1 826 1.8 978 4.7 405 16.5

Spouse’s employer ................... 6,752 9.6 4,084 8.7 2,494 11.9 174 7.1

Other relative’s employer .............. 2,823 4.0 2,762 5.9 45 0.2 17 0.7

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 5,223 7.4 2,837 6.0 1,540 7.3 847 34.5

Public health insurance ............... 1,345 1.9 744 1.6 207 1.0 394 16.0

No health insurance .................. 11,783 16.7 9,569 20.3 2,168 10.3 46 1.9

Unemployed .......................... 2,853 2.8 2,362 3.9 444 1.7 48 0.4

Previous employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380 13.3 261 11.0 104 23.5 15 (B)

Spouse’s employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 7.8 159 6.7 62 14.0 - (B)

Other relative’s employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 8.0 229 9.7 - - - (B)

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 165 5.8 127 5.4 18 4.0 20 (B)

Public health insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 9.0 211 8.9 32 7.3 13 (B)

No health insurance .................. 1,603 56.2 1,376 58.2 227 51.2 - (B)

Not in Labor Force .................... 27,052 26.9 10,768 17.9 5,290 19.8 10,994 81.4

Previous employer ................... 6,432 23.8 908 8.5 1,792 33.8 3,732 34.0

Spouse’s employer ................... 2,012 7.4 791 7.3 652 12.3 569 5.2

Other relative’s employer .............. 3,380 12.5 3,323 30.9 37 0.7 21 0.2

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 5,511 20.4 1,061 9.9 695 13.1 3,755 34.2

Public health insurance ............... 6,219 23.0 2,023 18.8 1,375 26.0 2,821 25.7

No health insurance .................. 3,498 12.9 2,662 24.7 741 14.0 95 0.9

Female ................................. 107,568 51.7 60,550 50.1 28,452 51.5 18,565 57.9

Employed ............................ 60,705 56.4 40,500 66.9 18,459 64.9 1,746 9.4

Current employer .................... 29,396 48.4 18,980 46.9 10,025 54.3 391 22.4

Previous employer ................... 1,127 1.9 469 1.2 501 2.7 157 9.0

Spouse’s employer ................... 14,281 23.5 9,222 22.8 4,829 26.2 230 13.2

Other relative’s employer .............. 2,677 4.4 2,580 6.4 82 0.4 15 0.8

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 3,504 5.8 1,765 4.4 1,062 5.8 677 38.8

Public health insurance ............... 2,158 3.6 1,642 4.1 261 1.4 255 14.6

No health insurance .................. 7,562 12.5 5,842 14.4 1,699 9.2 21 1.2

Unemployed .......................... 2,674 2.5 2,083 3.4 527 1.9 65 0.3

Previous employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329 12.3 224 10.7 95 18.0 10 (B)

Spouse’s employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481 18.0 326 15.7 147 28.0 7 (B)

Other relative’s employer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 7.3 196 9.4 - - - (B)

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 175 6.5 106 5.1 36 6.8 33 (B)

Public health insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533 19.9 461 22.1 57 10.8 15 (B)

No health insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 961 35.9 769 36.9 192 36.4 - (B)

Not in labor force ..................... 44,189 41.1 17,968 29.7 9,466 33.3 16,755 90.2

Previous employer ................... 4,813 10.9 994 5.5 1,147 12.1 2,673 15.9

Spouse’s employer ................... 12,153 27.5 5,346 29.8 4,128 43.6 2,679 16.0

Other relative’s employer .............. 3,418 7.7 3,244 18.1 78 0.8 97 0.6

Privately purchased or military-related . . . 8,971 20.3 1,167 6.5 959 10.1 6,845 40.9

Public health insurance ............... 9,453 21.4 3,396 18.9 1,703 18.0 4,354 26.0

No health insurance .................. 5,380 12.2 3,821 21.3 1,452 15.3 107 0.6

- Represents zero or rounds to zero. B The base for the derived figure is less than 75,000.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997.
purchased health insurance, or

military-related health insurance.10

In the 15-44 and 45-64 age groups,

unemployed people were more likely to be uninsured than people who

were employed or not in the labor

force. Unemployed men aged 15 to

44 were the most likely to be without health insurance at 58.2 percent

(not significantly different from the

rate of 51.2 for unemployed men

45 to 64). 

HEALTH INSURANCE

BENEFITS VARY BY

EMPLOYER

CHARACTERISTICS

Larger companies were more

likely than smaller ones to

offer and cover its employees

with health insurance.

As shown in Table 3, small businesses were less likely than larger

ones to offer health insurance.

Among all people who worked for

employers with fewer than 25

employees in 1997, only 52.1 percent had health insurance offers

from their current employer. The

offer rates increased with the size

of the company, reaching 91.6 percent for those who worked for

companies with 500 to 999

employees, and stayed at this

same level for companies with

1,000 or more employees.11

Coverage rates also increased with

business size. Out of those who

worked for employers with fewer

than 25 workers, only one-third

(33.8 percent) had health insurance

coverage through their current

employers in 1997. The coverage

rate jumped to two-thirds 

(66.3 percent) when the employer

size reached 500-999 (and 

67.8 percent for the largest

employers).

Smaller companies were more

likely to pay 100 percent of

the premium than larger ones.

The smaller the employer’s size,

the higher the percentage of covered workers with 100 percent of

their health insurance premiums

paid by their employer. Just over

44 percent of covered workers in

small companies (fewer than 25

employees) had their entire premiums paid by their employer, compared with 29.4 percent of covered

workers in companies with 1000

or more employees. Overall, the

majority of all covered employees

(62.9 percent) had partial premiums paid for their health insurance, while only a small percentage of employees (2.8 percent)

were in firms where employers

paid none of the premiums. 

Larger companies were likely

to offer more health

insurance choices than

smaller ones.

Larger companies were more likely

to offer a choice of several health

insurance plans, to cover part-time

workers, and to offer long-term

care. However, there is no clear

relationship between the company’s size and types of coverage.

For example, employees in larger

companies were just as likely to be

covered through a Health

Maintenance Organization (HMO)

as were employees in small and

medium-sized companies. 

Some currently nonworking people

— whether unemployed or not in

the labor force — had worked in

the past, and some currently

employed people had worked for

another employer previously. Table

3 shows that for people who had

previous employment (whether or

not they are currently working),

the previous employer’s size was

positively associated with a health

insurance offer, coverage on the

last day of employment and after

retirement and coverage at the

time of interview. Additionally,

larger employers were more likely

to cover their retirees with the

health insurance as a part of retirement benefits. 

Offer rates and coverage rates

were not uniform across

industries or occupations.

The number and percentage of

employers that offer health insurance varies among industry

groups, and so does the likelihood

that an employee is covered by the

employer’s offer. Workers in the

educational service industry and

the manufacturing industry were

the most likely to be offered health

insurance — 92.0 percent and 90.7

percent, respectively.12 Workers in

the transportation, communication,

and public utilities industries 

(89.0 percent) and workers in public relation and administration

(88.7 percent) were also highly

likely to be offered health insurance (see Table 4).12

At the other end of the spectrum,

the workers least likely to be

offered health insurance were in

the agriculture, mining, and construction industries (57.3 percent)

and those in the repair and recreational service industries (58.3 percent).12

The probability of a health insurance offer and coverage was not

uniform across industries. For

example, workers in the manufacturing industry were the most likely to be offered and covered by

health insurance, but educational

8 U.S. Census Bureau

10 Generally, everybody is covered by

Medicare after age 64, and some have another type of health insurance besides

Medicare. If some people have Medicaid and

a private (e.g., employment-based) health

insurance, this table puts them under “covered by private (e.g., employment-based)

health insurance.” 11 “Companies” and “businesses” are used

generically and include nonprofit organizations and government entities.

12 These rates are not statistically different.
U.S. Census Bureau 9

Table 3.

Characteristics of Health Insurance for Workers by Firm Size: 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

All firms Unknown

Size of firm

0 - 24 25 - 99 100 - 499 500 - 999 1,000+

Currently employed .................... 131,290 14,393 26,710 15,143 16,390 7,732 50,922

Percent ................................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Employer offers health insurance .......... 97,721 3,881 13,927 11,845 14,408 7,081 46,578

Percent ................................. 74.4 27.0 52.1 78.2 87.9 91.6 91.5

Covered by the offer ..................... 69,845 2,650 9,029 8,077 10,421 5,123 34,544

Percent out of all employed ............... 53.2 18.4 33.8 53.3 63.6 66.3 67.8

100 percent of the premium paid ......... 23,956 1,654 3,981 3,081 3,427 1,640 10,173

Percent out of all covered ............... 34.3 62.4 44.1 38.2 32.9 32.0 29.4

Partial premium paid ................... 43,931 770 4,733 4,719 6,721 3,390 23,599

Percent out of all covered ............... 62.9 29.1 52.4 58.4 64.5 66.2 68.3

No premium paid ....................... 1,957 227 315 276 274 93 773

Percent out of all covered ............... 2.8 8.6 3.5 3.4 2.6 1.8 2.2

Plan is health maintenance organization . . 31,598 869 3,717 3,637 4,802 2,220 16,353

Percent out of all covered ............... 45.2 43.6 40.4 45.1 45.8 43.3 47.4

There are several plans ................. 34,403 708 2,616 2,509 4,437 2,430 21,704

Percent out of all covered ............... 49.3 42.3 23.8 31.4 43.6 48.4 64.3

No health insurance offer ................ 33,570 10,512 12,783 3,298 1,982 651 4,344

Percent out of all employed ............... 25.6 73.0 47.9 21.8 12.1 8.4 8.5

Offers long-term care insurance ........... 19,631 887 1,776 1,350 2,306 1,518 11,794

Percent out of all employed ............... 15.0 22.9 12.8 11.4 16.0 21.4 25.3

Long-term coverage ..................... 11,980 649 1,112 926 1,475 877 6,941

Percent out of all employed ............... 9.1 16.7 8.0 7.8 10.2 12.4 14.9

100 percent of the premium paid ......... 4,791 333 512 470 506 386 2,582

Percent out of long-term covered ........ 40.0 51.3 46.1 50.8 34.3 44.0 37.2

Partial premium paid ................... 6,228 208 488 388 864 416 3,863

Percent out of long-term covered ......... 52.0 32.1 43.9 41.9 58.6 47.5 55.7

No premium paid ....................... 962 108 111 68 104 75 496

Percent out of long-term covered ......... 8.0 16.6 10.0 7.4 7.1 8.5 7.1

Part-time workers ...................... 27,053 4,169 7,986 2,637 2,379 1,099 8,782

Coverage to part-time .................. 4,605 341 811 465 482 292 2,214

Percent out of all part-time............... 17.0 8.2 10.2 17.6 20.3 26.5 25.2

Previous employment records . . . ....... 49,149 2,683 13,290 6,568 4,653 2,734 19,222

Percent ................................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Had health insurance offer ............... 34172 2158 5575 4413 3473 2188 16364

Percent................................ 69.5 80.4 42.0 67.2 74.7 80.0 85.1

Covered on last day .................... 28,643 1,776 4,355 3,410 2,803 1,851 14,448

Percent................................ 58.3 66.2 32.8 51.9 60.3 67.7 75.2

Had health insurance after retirement .... 16,991 945 2,256 1,687 1,398 1,057 9,648

Percent................................ 34.6 35.2 17.0 25.7 30.0 38.6 50.2

Still covered by that health insurance . .... 13,231 662 1,693 1,276 1,015 782 7,803

Percent. ............................... 26.9 24.7 12.7 19.4 21.8 28.6 40.6

Health insurance is retiree benefit ........ 2,849 145 387 275 273 171 1,598

Percent................................ 5.8 5.4 2.9 4.2 5.9 6.3 8.3

Note: Firms with zero employees are self-employed individuals paying themselves a salary.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997.
service industry workers, despite

statistically the same likelihood of

being offered health insurance, had

only a modest coverage rate 

(70.8 percent). Similarly, even

though agriculture, mining, and

construction workers were the

least likely to be offered health

insurance, their coverage rate

(70.4 percent) was not different

from the coverage rate of 71.5 percent for all workers who worked

for employers who offered health

insurance.

By occupation, architects, technicians, scientists, and medical workers were the most likely to be

offered health insurance (92.8 percent), followed by managers and

administrators (89.5 percent). Farm, 

construction, and mining workers

were the least likely to be offered

(55.5 percent) health insurance. 

As was true for industries, the

probabilities of receiving health

insurance offer and coverage were

not uniform across occupations.

For example, mechanics, repairers,

and precision workers were not the

most likely to be offered health

insurance, but they were one of

the most likely to be covered if

health insurance was offered. In

comparison, farm, construction,

and mining workers were the least

likely to be offered health insurance, but if they were, their likelihood of coverage was statistically

higher than two other occupation

groups and equal to three more

occupation groups. 

NONPARTICIPATION IN

HEALTH INSURANCE

Four in five who chose no

coverage were covered

through another source.

Among workers who were not covered by the health plan offered by

their current employer, some chose

not to participate and some could

not participate. Among all nonparticipants, 46.4 percent chose not

to be covered by their employer’s

plan, mainly because they had

health insurance from a different

source (79.7 percent of them had

health insurance from another

source). Another 37.1 percent were

ineligible because they were not

full-time, permanent workers. An

estimated 15.4 percent were not

insured by their employer’s health

10 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 4.

Employer-Based Offer and Coverage Rates by Industry and Occupation: 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

All

employed

number

Offered by employer Covered by the offer

Number Percent Number Percent

Total ........................................... 131,290 97,721 74.4 69,845 71.5

Industry Groups

Unknown . . ................................... 13,732 3,662 26.7 2,486 67.9

Agriculture, mining, construction ................. 9,208 5,277 57.3 3,714 70.4

Manufacturing ................................. 20,043 18,174 90.7 15,335 84.4

Transportation, communication, public utilities ..... 8,078 7,188 89.0 5,854 81.4

Wholesale and retail trade . . . ................... 24,757 17,823 72.0 10,283 57.7

Finance, insurance, real estate, business ......... 12,514 10,042 80.2 7,161 71.3

Repair and recreational services . . . .............. 7,174 4,182 58.3 2,482 59.4

Health and legal services ....................... 11,371 9,815 86.3 6,618 67.4

Educational services ........................... 10,769 9,907 92.0 7,018 70.8

Family and child care services . . . ................ 2,675 1,922 71.8 1,134 59.0

Public relations and administration . . ............. 10,969 9,728 88.7 7,760 79.8

Occupation Groups

Unknown . . ................................... 13,718 3,644 26.6 2,469 67.8

Managers, administrators ....................... 14,812 13,258 89.5 10,776 81.3

Architects, technicians, scientists, medical workers . 11,280 10,466 92.8 8,209 78.4

Teachers, lawyers, artists, social scientists ........ 10,199 8,944 87.7 6,642 74.3

Sales ......................................... 13,094 9,999 76.4 6,172 61.7

General office workers .......................... 18,642 15,826 84.9 10,970 69.3

House, food, personal, protective service workers . 16,525 10,456 63.3 5,691 54.4

Farm, construction, mining workers .............. 6,673 3,705 55.5 2,662 71.8

Mechanics, repairers, precision workers .......... 7,873 6,770 86.0 5,582 82.4

Operators, laborers, helpers ..................... 18,475 14,654 79.3 10,673 72.8

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997.
U.S. Census Bureau 11

Table 5.

Reasons for Not Participating in an Employer s Health Insurance Plan by Age, Sex, Race,

and Hispanic Origin: 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

15 years and over 15-44 years 45-64 years 65 years and over

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

All Nonparticipants .............. 27,875 100.0 20,040 100.0 6,760 100.0 1,075 100.0

Ineligible ....................... 1,338 37.1 8,254 41.2 1,629 24.1 456 42.4

In probationary period ......... 3,452 33.4 3,042 36.9 404 24.8 6 1.2

Temporary ................... 1,080 10.4 804 9.7 255 15.6 21 4.5

Part-time .................... 5,513 53.3 4,229 51.2 895 55.0 389 85.3

Denied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317 1.1 196 1.0 104 1.5 17 1.6

By choice ...................... 12,931 46.4 8,630 43.1 3,861 57.1 441 41.0

Have health insurance ........ 10,305 79.7 6,535 75.7 3,360 87.0 409 92.9

Too expensive ................ 2,800 21.7 2,164 25.1 590 15.3 45 10.3

Other .......................... 4,289 15.4 2,961 14.8 1,166 17.3 162 15.0

Male ............................ 12,183 100.0 8,861 100.0 2,736 100.0 586 100.0

Ineligible ....................... 4,528 37.2 3,755 42.4 537 19.6 237 40.4

In probationary period ......... 1,876 41.4 1,665 44.3 206 38.3 6 2.4

Temporary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510 11.3 406 10.8 86 16.1 17 7.3

Part-time .................... 1,980 43.7 1,560 41.6 220 41.0 200 84.3

Denied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 1.0 83 0.9 32 1.2 10 1.7

By choice ...................... 5,201 42.7 3,367 38.0 1,592 58.2 241 41.1

Have health insurance ........ 3,738 71.9 2,176 64.6 1,336 83.9 226 93.7

Too expensive ................ 1,479 28.4 1,145 34.0 312 19.6 22 9.2

Other .......................... 2,329 19.1 1,656 18.7 575 21.0 98 16.8

Female .......................... 15,692 100.0 11,180 100.0 4,024 100.0 489 100.0

Ineligible ....................... 5,810 37.0 4,499 40.2 1,092 27.1 219 44.7

In probationary period ......... 1,576 27.1 1,378 30.6 198 18.1 - 0.0

Temporary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570 9.8 398 8.9 168 15.4 3 1.5

Part-time .................... 3,533 60.8 2,669 59.3 675 61.9 189 86.4

Denied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 1.2 113 1.0 73 1.8 7 1.4

By choice ...................... 7,731 49.3 5,262 47.1 2,269 56.4 200 40.9

Have health insurance ........ 6,567 84.9 4,359 82.8 2,024 89.2 184 91.8

Too expensive ................ 1,321 17.1 1,020 19.4 277 12.2 23 11.7

Other .......................... 1,959 12.5 1,305 11.7 591 14.7 63 12.9

Non-Hispanic Whites ............. 20,983 100.0 14,561 100.0 5,469 100.0 953 100.0

Ineligible ....................... 7,484 35.7 5,783 39.7 1,290 23.6 411 43.1

In probationary period ......... 2,308 30.8 1,980 34.2 323 25.0 6 1.4

Temporary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 714 9.5 511 8.8 182 14.1 21 5.0

Part-time .................... 4,231 56.5 3,148 54.4 729 56.5 353 86.0

Denied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244 1.2 148 1.0 80 1.5 17 1.7

By choice ...................... 10,073 48.0 6,506 44.7 3,178 58.1 390 40.9

Have health insurance ........ 8,438 83.8 5,206 80.0 2,864 90.1 368 94.4

Too expensive ................ 1,870 18.6 1,420 21.8 415 13.1 36 9.2

Other .......................... 3,182 15.2 2,125 14.6 922 16.9 136 14.3

Black ............................ 3,369 100.0 2,682 100.0 619 100.0 68 100.0

Ineligible ....................... 1,446 42.9 1,278 47.6 148 23.8 21 (B)

In probationary period . . . . . . . . . 647 44.7 601 47.0 46 31.3 - (B)

Temporary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 10.9 128 10.0 29 19.5 - (B)

Part-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 612 42.3 533 41.7 64 43.2 16 (B)

Denied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 0.8 18 0.7 7 1.2 - (B)

By choice ...................... 1,385 41.1 1,023 38.1 332 53.6 30 (B)

Have health insurance . . . . . . . . 888 64.1 636 62.2 228 68.8 23 (B)

Too expensive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455 32.9 349 34.1 100 30.0 7 (B)

Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513 15.2 363 13.5 132 21.4 17 (B)

Hispanic Origin1 ................. 2,460 100.0 2,032 100.0 398 100.0 30 100.0

Ineligible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 991 40.3 850 41.8 129 32.5 11 (B)

In probationary period . . . . . . . . . 353 35.6 341 40.1 12 9.6 - (B)

Temporary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 14.0 102 12.0 36 27.8 - (B)

Part-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473 47.8 399 46.9 68 52.4 7 (B)

Denied . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 1.1 24 1.2 2 0.6 - (B)

By choice ...................... 1,022 41.6 824 40.5 182 45.8 16 (B)

Have health insurance . . . . . . . . 580 56.8 462 56.0 106 57.8 13 (B)

Too expensive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415 40.6 348 42.3 63 34.8 3 (B)

Other . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421 17.1 335 16.5 84 21.1 3 (B)

- Represents zero or rounds to zero. B The base for the derived figure is less than 75,000.

1

Because Hispanics may be of any race, data in this report for Hispanics overlap slightly with data for the Black population.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997.
plan for other, unknown, reasons.

Workers 45 to 64 were the least

likely to be ineligible (24.1 percent) and the most likely to choose

no coverage (57.1 percent) (see

Table 5).

While some workers chose not to

participate in health insurance

plans from their current employer

because of coverage from a different source, others did not participate because their employer’s plan

was too expensive. Overall, 1 in 5

people aged 15 years and older

choosing not to participate in their

employer’s health plan did so

because the plan was too expensive; the rate was one in every four

for those aged 15 to 44.

The majority of workers in all age

groups who were ineligible to participate were part-time workers.

However, many other workers were

ineligible because they were in a

probationary period, which would

typically be the case for recent

hires. As Table 5 shows, workers

65 and over had the highest ineligibility rate because of part-time

work status, and younger workers

had higher ineligibility rates

because of a probationary period.

Nonparticipation because of denial

was very low — around 1 percent.

A greater proportion of

women than men were

ineligible due to part-time

status. 

Among ineligible workers, 

43.7 percent of men and 60.8 percent of women were ineligible

because they worked part-time.

However, the likelihood of being

ineligible because of a probationary period was higher for men

(41.4 percent) than for women

(27.1 percent).

Women were less likely than

men to cite cost as a reason

for not participating.

Women aged 15 to 44 years old

were more likely to choose not to

participate than men in the same

age group, but this difference disappears in older age groups.

Similarly, women aged 15 to 64

were less likely than men to

choose not to participate because

the plan was too expensive.

Blacks were less likely than

non-Hispanic Whites to be

eligible.

Compared with non-Hispanic

Whites, Blacks in general were

more likely to be ineligible for their

employer’s health plan. However,

when compared by age, the difference disappeared after age 44.

Non-Hispanic Whites and Hispanics

were equally likely to be ineligible

in each age group. 

Overall, non-Hispanic Whites were

the most likely to choose not to

participate. When compared by

age, 15 to 44 year old nonHispanic Whites were more likely

than Blacks, and 45 to 64 year old

non-Hispanic Whites were more

likely than Hispanics, of respective

ages, to choose not to participate.

However, the remaining by-choice

nonparticipation rates in each age

group were statistically the same

across all the race and origin

groups. Non-Hispanic Whites in all

age groups, except for the oldest,

were the least likely not to participate because the plan was too

expensive; there is no significant

difference between Blacks and

Hispanics who chose not to be

covered because of expense. 

STATUS OF WORKERS NOT

COVERED BY THEIR

CURRENT EMPLOYER

Least educated employees

were the least likely to be

covered from another source.

Among employees aged 15 to 64

who were not covered by their current employer, whether or not

there was an offer, the probability

of health insurance coverage from

another source was positively

related to the level of education.

However, education did not play a

role in health insurance coverage

rates among workers aged 65 and

over.

Among people who were 15 to 64

years, those who had not completed high school and worked for an

employer who did not offer health

insurance were the least likely to

have health insurance from another source. An estimated 49.4 percent of those aged 15 to 44 and

55.1 percent of workers aged 45

to 64 in this group, did not have

health insurance of any kind (see

Table 6).13 As education increased,

so did the likelihood of being

insured. 

Among workers 15 to 44 not covered by their current employer’s

health insurance offer, 39.1 percent of those who had not completed high school and 35.4 percent of those who had graduated

from high school or had some college were without any health insurance.13

12 U.S. Census Bureau

13 These rates are not statistically different.
U.S. Census Bureau 13

Table 6.

Health Insurance of People Not Participating in Current Employer s Plan by Age

and Education: 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

15 years and over 15-44 years 45-64 years 65 years and over

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Did not complete high school.......... 11,794 100.0 8,542 100.0 2,431 100.0 821 100.0

Not offered by employer.............. 7,781 100.0 5,560 100.0 1,659 100.0 562 100.0

Covered by previous employer. . . . . . . . . 196 2.5 67 1.2 79 4.8 50 8.9

Covered by spouse’s employer . . . . . . . . 915 11.8 575 10.3 321 19.4 19 3.4

Covered by other relative’s employer . . . 1,281 16.5 1,262 22.7 10 0.6 9 1.6

Privately purchased or military-related . . 819 10.5 343 6.2 197 11.9 278 49.5

Covered by public health insurance . . . . 880 11.3 566 10.2 138 8.3 176 31.3

Has no health insurance . . . ........... 3,690 47.4 2,747 49.4 914 55.1 30 5.3

Offered but not covered . ............. 4,013 100.0 2,982 100.0 772 100.0 259 100.0

Covered by previous employer. . . . . . . . . 199 5.0 69 2.3 76 9.8 54 20.8

Covered by spouse’s employer . . . . . . . . 841 21.0 503 16.9 297 38.5 41 15.9

Covered by other relative’s employer . . . 915 22.8 895 30.0 12 1.6 7 2.8

Privately purchased or military-related . . 291 7.2 116 3.9 53 6.9 121 46.9

Covered by public health insurance . . . . 304 7.6 233 7.8 37 4.8 35 13.6

Has no health insurance . . . ........... 1,462 36.4 1,166 39.1 296 38.4 - 0.0

High school or some college........... 32,267 100.0 22,938 100.0 7,823 100.0 1,506 100.0

Not offered by employer.............. 17,591 100.0 11,988 100.0 4,616 100.0 987 100.0

Covered by previous employer. . . . . . . . . 831 4.7 320 2.7 378 8.2 133 13.5

Covered by spouse’s employer ........ 4,919 28.0 2,963 24.7 1,862 40.3 95 9.6

Covered by other relative’s employer . . . 1,456 8.3 1,422 11.9 30 0.7 4 0.4

Privately purchased or military-related . . 2,903 16.5 1,476 12.3 892 19.3 535 54.2

Covered by public health insurance . . . . 1,114 6.3 740 6.2 163 3.5 211 21.4

Has no health insurance . . . ........... 6,368 36.2 5,068 42.3 1,291 28.0 9 0.9

Offered but not covered . ............. 14,676 100.0 10,950 100.0 3,207 100.0 518 100.0

Covered by previous employer. . . . . . . . . 889 6.1 395 3.6 388 12.1 106 20.4

Covered by spouse’s employer ........ 5,597 38.1 3,736 34.1 1,768 55.1 93 17.9

Covered by other relative’s employer . . . 1,446 9.9 1,411 12.9 36 1.1 - 0.0

Privately purchased or military-related . . 1,561 10.6 958 8.8 365 11.4 237 45.7

Covered by public health insurance . . . . 707 4.8 573 5.2 58 1.8 76 14.6

Has no health insurance . . . ........... 4,477 30.5 3,878 35.4 592 18.4 7 1.4

College graduates..................... 17,385 100.0 10,863 100.0 5,612 100.0 910 100.0

Not offered by employer . ............ 8,198 100.0 4,755 100.0 2,831 100.0 613 100.0

Covered by previous employer. . . . . . . . . 516 6.3 178 3.7 238 8.4 100 16.4

Covered by spouse’s employer ........ 3,199 39.0 1,839 38.7 1,237 43.7 124 20.3

Covered by other relative’s employer . . . 203 2.5 173 3.6 23 0.8 8 1.3

Privately purchased or military-related . . 2,028 24.7 987 20.8 775 27.4 266 43.4

Covered by public health insurance . . . . 298 3.6 145 3.1 47 1.7 105 17.1

Has no health insurance . . . ........... 1,955 23.8 1,433 30.1 512 18.1 10 1.6

Offered but not covered . ............. 9,187 100.0 6,108 100.0 2,781 100.0 298 100.0

Covered by previous employer. . . . . . . . . 706 7.7 267 4.4 320 11.5 119 40.0

Covered by spouse’s employer ........ 5,561 60.5 3,691 60.4 1,838 66.1 32 10.7

Covered by other relative’s employer . . . 198 2.2 179 2.9 16 0.6 4 1.2

Privately purchased or military-related . . 1,127 12.3 722 11.8 319 11.5 86 29.0

Covered by public health insurance . . . . 201 2.2 131 2.1 25 0.9 45 15.2

Has no health insurance . . . ........... 1,393 15.2 1,119 18.3 263 9.5 11 3.8

- Represents zero or rounds to zero.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation, August-November 1997.
For workers who did not have

health insurance through their current employer, whether or not the

employer offered a plan, those

with more education were more

likely to be covered by their

spouse’s health insurance. This

source was most prevalent among

workers aged 15 to 64, except for

those who were aged 15 to 44 and

had not completed high school.

For that group, another relative’s

employer was the predominant

source of health insurance. In

1997, 66.1 percent of 45-to-64-

year old college graduates who

were not covered by their own

employer’s plan were instead covered by their spouse’s employer. 

Previous employer covered 

40 percent of nonparticipating

college graduates over 64.

For workers aged 65 and over, privately purchased or military-related

health insurance was the most

important source of health insurance after Medicare.14 However, in

this age group, 40 percent of college graduates who were not covered by their current employer’s

offer had coverage through their

previous employer, which is not

statistically different from their

coverage through privately purchased or military-related health

insurance (29 percent).

SOURCE AND ACCURACY 

OF ESTIMATES

Source of the Data

The Survey of Program

Participation (SIPP) collects information from the noninstitutionlized resident population living in

the United States. Foreign visitors

who work or attend school in this

country and their families are eligible, whereas Armed Forces personnel living in military barracks and

institutionalized persons, such as

correctional facility inmates and

nursing home residents, are not

eligible to be in the survey. People

aged 15 and over are eligible for

interview. A parent or a guardian

gives information about people

less than 15 years of age.

This report is based on data collected in wave 5 of the 1996 panel

of the SIPP 1996 — which included

a topical module on employerbased health benefits along with

the core files on health insurance,

labor force, and employment. Since

the Employer-Provided Health

Benefits topical module records

information from people ages 15

and over, the estimates in this

report do not refer to people less

than 15 years of age.

All estimates in this report have

been weighted to represent the

U.S. civilian noninstitutional population in August-November 1998.

The information about age, sex,

race, and Hispanic origin; health

insurance status, labor market status, employment status and

employer characteristics come

from the SIPP core. Details of the

employers’ health insurance plan,

coverage status, coverage types

and characteristics come from the

topical module.

Accuracy of the Estimates

Statistics from surveys are subject

to sampling and nonsampling

error. The magnitude of the sampling error can be measured by

calculating the standard errors of

the estimates. Since all our estimates in this report are proportion

estimates, we can calculate the

standard error by using the formula for the standard errors of the

sample proportions. However, we

cannot measure the nonsampling

error. Therefore, caution should be

used when comparing data in different reports.

Nonsampling errors can come from

several sources, such as inability

to obtain all information, definitional difficulties and differences in

the interpretation of the questions,

and the inability or unwillingness

of respondents to provide correct

information. Additionally, inability

or error in collecting, coding, and

processing data and confusion of

the reference periods also cause

nonsampling errors.

In the SIPP, reference periods for

variables vary. Most variables in

the core refer to the last 4 months,

while some variables in the core

and topical module refer to a particular month or week or an entire

year. Thus, combining different

SIPP files might cause additional

nonsampling error because different variables have different reference periods. Therefore, use caution when comparing this report

with other reports. Detailed discussions of the existence and control

of nonsampling errors in the SIPP

can be found in the SIPP Quality

Profile report.

All statements in this report have

undergone statistical testing, and

14 U.S. Census Bureau

14 Generally, everybody is covered by

Medicare after age 65, and some also have

another type of health insurance besides

Medicare. If some people have Medicaid and

a privately purchased or military-related

health insurance, this table puts them under

“covered by private-purchased or militaryrelated health insurance.” 
all comparisons are significant at

the 90-percent confidence level.

Further information on the source

and accuracy of the estimates is at

[http://www.sipp.census.gov/sipp

/source.html].

For more information about the

SIPP, see

http://www.sipp.census.gov. To

view the SIPP Quality Profile, go to 

http://www.sipp.census.gov/sipp

/workpapr/wp230.pdf

Contact the Demographic

Statistical Methods Division for

information on the source and

accuracy of the data at: 

301-763-6445

dsmd_s&a@census.gov

Contact Shailesh Bhandari about

the contents of the report at:

301-763-3213

shailesh.r.bhandari@census.gov

U.S. Census Bureau 15
U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

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