Heat Map: Share of Residents Who Are Uninsured, 2022
Texas is home to the country’s largest share of Americans under 65 without health insurance, according to new Census Bureau data, with 18.8% of residents uninsured as of 2022.
Why it matters: That’s a big improvement over 2006, when 27.6% of Texans were uninsured — but still nearly double the national uninsured rate of 9.5%.
By the numbers: After Texas, Oklahoma (14.3%), Wyoming (14.1%) and Florida (13.9%) have the highest share of uninsured residents among U.S. states and Washington, D.C.
- Massachusetts (2.9%), Washington, D.C. (3.1%) and Hawai’i (4.3%) have the lowest.
The big picture: The uninsured rate fell in 627 U.S. counties and increased in only 23 between 2021 and 2022 — meaning Americans are trending toward being covered rather than not.
- Coverage expansions under the Affordable Care Act and social safety net policies enacted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic are helping reduce the uninsured rate, per KFF.
Yes, but: More recent preliminary data shows an uptick in the overall uninsured rate as states cut Medicaid rolls and unemployment rises, Axios’ Maya Goldman reports.