Access to Job-Based Insurance for California's Workers and their Families: The Effect of the Great Recession and Double-Digit Unemployment in California

Shana Alex Lavarreda, Ninez A. Ponce, Livier Cabezas, E. Richard Brown
2011 California Journal of Politics and Policy  
Lack of health insurance affects workers and families who depend on job-based coverage for health care. In 2007, the unemployment rate in California was 5.5%. By the end of 2009, it had more than doubled to 12.3%. This study uses data from the 2007 and 2009 California Health Interview Survey to assess changes in access to job-based health insurance among California workers and their dependents. We find that although increased unemployment dramatically reduced the number of employees, the
more » ... ion of employees with no access to job-based coverage through either their own or a spouse's work remained constant. Among adults with no family access to job-based insurance, the most significant determinants of being uninsured were income and citizenship. Due to more generous public health insurance options, children with the lowest household incomes were not significantly more likely to be uninsured than children with higher household incomes. The results highlight the importance of public health insurance for children and confirm the need for the Affordable Care Act's insurance expansion provisions.
doi:10.5070/p26k61 fatcat:e7wnwvqvpfhpdfwkh2ezvreyva