Byline: Sarah Wyatt Associated Press
The percentage of Wisconsin residents who have no insurance has dropped significantly in the last two years, to the third-lowest rate in the country, a Census Bureau report says.
The percentage of state residents who went without any kind of health insurance was almost half the national rate in 2000 -- about 7.4 percent, down from 10 percent in 1999 and 10.5 percent in 1998, the report said.
The national rate in 2000 was 14 percent, down from 14.3 percent in1999.
The Census Bureau report was based on the March 2001 Current Population Survey, in which the agency asked people in 50,000 households nationwide whether they were covered by some form of private or government-provided health insurance in 2000.
Statistics on uninsured people released by the state Department of Health and Family Services painted an even more optimistic picture.
Wisconsin's 2000 Family Health Survey, conducted between May and December of last year, found that 4 percent of Wisconsin residents had no insurance in the previous 12 months, and 7 percent had health insurance for only part of the year.
At any one time, about 6 percent of state residents had no insurance, officials said. Those most likely to be uninsured were adults age 18 to 44, low-income residents, people who did not graduate from high school, part-time employees, Hispanics and blacks, the state report said.
Eleanor Cautley, an analyst for the state survey, said Wisconsin asked different questions and used a larger and more diverse sample than the Census Bureau, which could account for the differences in the statistics. State workers also conducted their entire survey by telephone, meaning they missed households that don't have telephones.
Of those who had health insurance, 76 percent had private insurance, 4 percent had medical assistance, 2 percent were enrolled in Medicare and 12 percent had a combination of different insurance providers, the state report said.
While the statistics reflected a positive trend, some wondered whether the numbers would hold in light of the nation's shaky economic future after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Jon Peacock, director of the Wisconsin Budget Project, a family advocacy group, said the positive news may dissipate this year if many people are laid off or if employers cut back their insurance coverage.
Some of the people who are most likely to be uninsured, according to Peacock, include:
* Low-income childless adults who don't qualify for Medicaid and can't afford their own health insurance.
* Farmers or employees of small businesses whose insurance is not covered by their employers and who can't afford private insurance.
* Low-income residents who don't know they qualify for state assistance.
* Employees whose job provides some coverage but who can't afford the insurance co-pay.
According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute, 77.7 percent of Wisconsin workers -- or roughly 2.3 million people -- receive health insurance through their employers.
'It's good news that employers in this state are well above average in insuring their workers,' he said. 'But it means that in a time of recession, there could be a big increase in the number of uninsured people and in the number of people who may be applying for state assistance.'
It's too early to measure the impact of the terrorist attacks on the state economy, said Chris Marschman, a spokesman for the Department of Workforce Development.
Philip Sanders, 36, said he is a roofer who has not had health insurance in the 10 years he has lived in Madison.
'I've just been taking my chances. I can't afford health insurance right now,' he said, adding that he was not aware of any state programs that might help him get insurance.
John Henry, 30, a steel driver, said he has had health insurance through employers in the past, but he is currently unemployed.
Wisconsin's BadgerCare program could have helped cut the number of residents without health insurance, although state officials have not analyzed the survey results, Cautley said.
The program, which began in July 1999, was designed to provide health insurance to those who earn too little to afford private insurance and too much to meet Medicaid's poverty requirements. There were 84,600 people enrolled as of Aug. 31.
