WASHINGTON, D.C.—A report released today by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (Georgetown University CCF) and NCLR (National Council of La Raza) found that uninsurance rates for Hispanic children reached a historic low in the first year the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) coverage provisions took effect. The report found:
The number of uninsured Hispanic children dropped by approximately 300,000 children, from about 2 million in 2013 to 1.7 million in 2014.
The uninsurance rate for Hispanic children declined by nearly two percentage points from 11.5 to 9.7 percent in the same one-year time period.
The report also found that while the health coverage gap is narrowing for Hispanic children, they are still more likely to be uninsured than their peers. An estimated 9.7 percent of Hispanic children were uninsured in 2014 compared to 6 percent of all children. Hispanic children made up a much greater share of the uninsured child population (39.5 percent) than the child population at large (24.4 percent) in 2014.
“With nearly one-third of the child population projected to be Latino by mid-century, we know the future well-being and success of our nation is linked to that of the Latino community,” said Steven T. Lopez, Manager, NCLR Health Policy Project. “We are pleased to see that the gap in health coverage between Hispanic children and all children is closing but there are still inequities to address. Policymakers must act to ensure that every child, no matter who they are, where they live or how much their family earns, can get quality, affordable health coverage and care.”
The 50-state report found that some states are making more progress than others.
Hispanic children were much more likely to have health coverage in states that have taken multiple steps to expand coverage for children and parents. The states that have been most successful have higher income eligibility thresholds for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), removed a five-year waiting period for lawfully residing immigrant children, and accepted the ACA’s option to extend Medicaid coverage to low-income uninsured parents and other adults. Successful states have also developed strong community-based enrollment systems, offered high-quality Spanish language educational and enrollment materials, and have removed unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles to enrollment.
“The vast majority of uninsured Hispanic children are citizens and most are eligible for Medicaid and CHIP but have not yet enrolled,” said Sonya Schwartz, Research Fellow, Georgetown University CCF. “This report points to the need to remove more barriers to coverage, and find ways to get the whole family covered so that Hispanic children can grow up healthy and more financially secure.”
The Georgetown University Center for Children and Families (CCF) is an independent, nonpartisan policy and research center founded in 2005 with a mission to expand and improve high-quality, affordable health coverage for America’s children and families. For more information on CCF, please visit ccf.georgetown.edu.
NCLR—the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States—works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans. For more information on NCLR, please visit www.nclr.org or follow along on Facebook and Twitter.
