Noncoverage rates fall as household income rises. Of the 142.9 million workers, 53.1 percent had employment-based health insurance policies in their own name. These estimates do not reflect the fact that some workers are covered by employment-based coverage through another family member. More children lacked coverage in 1996 than in 1995. 13.8 percent of children under 6, 14.6 percent of children 6 to 11, and 16.1 percent of children 12 to 17.
States show differences in noncoverage rates.
Using three-year averages between 1994 and 1996, uninsured rates ranged from 8.2 percent in Wisconsin to 24.3 percent in Texas. However, we advise against using these estimates to rank the states. Results from different samples could easily show different estimates and rankings because of small sample sizes. For example, the high noncoverage rate for Texas was not statistically different from that in New Mexico, while the rates for South Dakota, Minnesota, Hawaii, and North Dakota were not statistically different from Wisconsin. This report presents data on the health insurance coverage of people in the United States during the 1996 calendar year.