The California HealthCare Foundation's annual publication, California's Uninsured, 2008, shows that over the past 20 years, the percent of uninsured Californians under age 65 has continued to rise, as employer-sponsored health insurance has declined.
Between 1987 and 2007, the report reveals, employer-sponsored coverage in California declined almost 8 percent.
The problem, though national, is more prominent in California. The state has a lower percentage of those with employer-sponsored coverage and a higher proportion of uninsured than the nation. And because of California's large population, the number of individuals without insurance - 6.6 million - is the highest of any state.
The report also shows that although families with yearly incomes below $25,000 are the most likely to be uninsured, the likelihood is rising for families with incomes of $50,000 and above, reflecting that health insurance is growing too expensive for many California employers to offer and many employees to take up.
Other findings include:
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Workers at private-sector businesses of all sizes are experiencing an increased likelihood of being uninsured, although it is most pronounced in businesses with fewer than 10 employees.
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Almost a third of the uninsured in California have family incomes of more than $50,000.
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Twenty-seven percent of families with incomes between $25,000 and $50,000 are uninsured.
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Seventy percent of California's uninsured children are in families where the head of the household has a year-round, full-time job.
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Nearly 60 percent of the state's uninsured are Latino.