Uninsured Americans : A 1987 Profile
Author: Short, Pamela Farley
Date Published: 1988
This paper presents estimates of the size characteristics of the uninsured population from a new data source, the 1987 National Medical Expenditure Survey. Data from the first NMES interview indicate 37 million persons were uninsured in early 1987, a finding consistent with the Current Population Survey and somewhat higher than other recent national surveys would suggest. NMES confirms and updates a number of well-known facts about this population. Lack of insurance is observed at the highest rate among young adults and among blacks and Hispanics, as well as persons in families where no one is employed. However, workers and their families still account for more than three-quarters of the uninsured. Employees of small firms, low-wage earners, part-time employees and the self-employed, and employees in industries characterized by seasonal and temporary employment and by a less skilled and less unionized workforce are most likely among the working population to lack insurance for themselves and their families.
Date Published: 1988
This paper presents estimates of the size characteristics of the uninsured population from a new data source, the 1987 National Medical Expenditure Survey. Data from the first NMES interview indicate 37 million persons were uninsured in early 1987, a finding consistent with the Current Population Survey and somewhat higher than other recent national surveys would suggest. NMES confirms and updates a number of well-known facts about this population. Lack of insurance is observed at the highest rate among young adults and among blacks and Hispanics, as well as persons in families where no one is employed. However, workers and their families still account for more than three-quarters of the uninsured. Employees of small firms, low-wage earners, part-time employees and the self-employed, and employees in industries characterized by seasonal and temporary employment and by a less skilled and less unionized workforce are most likely among the working population to lack insurance for themselves and their families.
