Coverage Trends - California Health Care Foundation

Coverage Trends
With the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the health insurance landscape changed dramatically in California. Fewer Californians are uninsured, more than one in three is now enrolled in Medi-Cal, and over a million purchase insurance through the ACA-mandated health insurance marketplace, Covered California. CHCF reports analyze and track trends in health insurance coverage, how much that coverage costs, and who remains uninsured.

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State, Federal Actions Protected Health Coverage for Millions During Pandemic

September 27, 2021

Heather Tirado Gilligan

Expanding Health Coverage, Medi-Cal, Coverage Trends

Stories That Caught Our Attention: The percentage of Americans with health insurance remained stable during 2020 despite a hobbled economy.

Medical Loss Ratio Resources

Katherine Wilson

Coverage Trends

The medical loss ratio (MLR) is the percentage of premium that health insurers spend on medical care and quality improvement activities. These resources include the most recent MLR database with data from 2012 to 2019, as well as documents that describe the MLR and how to use the database.

Unexpected Growth in California Health Insurance During COVID-19 Recession

Katherine Wilson

Coverage Trends

Data from California regulators show that — despite job losses — health insurance enrollment in the pandemic year 2020 increased by over one million (3.3%). State and federal policies designed to help people get and keep coverage were important factors.

2021 Edition — California Employer Health Benefits

Heidi Whitmore, Jennifer Satorius

Coverage Trends

Workers in California are shouldering more of the costs for their health benefits, paying both a larger share of premiums and higher deductibles and copays. California Employer Health Benefits: Are Workers Covered? presents data from the 2020 California Health Benefits Survey.

2021 Edition — Medi-Cal Facts and Figures

Len Finocchio, James Paci, Matthew Newman, Blue Sky Consulting Group

Medi-Cal, Coverage Trends

Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, is the state’s health insurance program for Californians with low incomes, including children, people with disabilities, and seniors. Get the latest data on this program, which covers one in three Californians.

2021 Edition — California Health Insurance Enrollment

Katherine Wilson

Coverage Trends

In 2020, California health insurers covered 33.8 million enrollees. This quick reference guide shows enrollment by regulator, market, and insurer. Data files are also available to download.

American Rescue Plan Improvements to Covered California Affordability: Who Gains?

Miranda Dietz, Srikanth Kadiyala, Tynan Challenor, Annie Rak, Dylan H. Roby, Laurel Lucia, Gerald F. Kominski

Expanding Health Coverage, Coverage Trends

Over 1.6 million Californians will benefit from the rescue plan, including 151,000 individual market enrollees who will qualify for subsidies for the first time and 135,000 uninsured people who will become insured.

Undocumented Projected to Remain California’s Largest Group of Uninsured in 2022

Miranda Dietz, Laurel Lucia, Srikanth Kadiyala, Tynan Challenor, Annie Rak, Dylan H. Roby, Gerald F. Kominski

Expanding Health Coverage, Medi-Cal, Coverage Trends

Even after the American Rescue Plan increases premium subsidies for health insurance purchased through Covered California, large inequities remain in who has access to affordable coverage.

Hanging On to Coverage?

Katherine Wilson, Laurel Lucia

Coverage Trends

Millions of Californians lost jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic. But early information from California’s insurance regulators suggests that — at least through June — the number of Californians with job-based health insurance has not changed as dramatically as feared. This may help partially explain why the state’s Medicaid program, Medi-Cal, has not yet experienced a big surge in enrollment.

How Many in Your Area Are Covered by the Affordable Care Act?

Katherine Wilson

Coverage Trends, Medi-Cal

This is an overview of the Affordable Care Act’s role in providing health care coverage to Californians, which is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the ACA remains under threat. See how many people in your local area are covered under the ACA.

Weighed Down: Californians and the Financial Burden of Health Care Coverage

State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC)

Coverage Trends

This issue brief explores the affordability of health coverage in California in 2018, the latest year for which data are available, with a particular focus on health insurance deductibles and on who reports the greatest affordability challenges. Where possible, this brief compares data in 2018 to 2013, the last year before full implementation of the ACA, to assess trends under the ACA.

Data Show 2019 California Health Insurance Enrollment Struck a Balance

Katherine Wilson

Coverage Trends, Medi-Cal

Medi-Cal and individual market enrollment continued to decline but were offset by growth in employer-sponsored and Medicare plans.

2020 Edition — California Health Insurance Enrollment

Katherine Wilson

Coverage Trends

In 2019, California health insurers covered 32.7 million enrollees. This quick reference guide shows enrollment by regulator, market, and insurer. Data files are also available to download.

In the Pandemic Era, Is It Safe to Go to Work?

Xenia Shih Bion

Coverage Trends, Health Equity

Stories That Caught Our Attention: As more businesses reopen, COVID-19 and fear of catching the new coronavirus are taking a significant toll on American workers.

One in Six Adults in California Immigrant Families Avoided Public Benefits in 2019, Study Finds

Coverage Trends, Medi-Cal, Health Equity

Confusion about the public charge rule and the chilling effect it has caused are urgent problems in light of COVID-19 and its economic fallout.