The number of Americans without health insurance skyrocketed between 2008 & 2009. Census Bureau statistics show:
The number of people without health insurance coverage rose from 46.3 million in 2008 to 50.7 million in 2009, while the percentage increased from 15.4 percent to 16.7 percent over the same period.
The number covered by employment-based health insurance declined from 176.3 million to 169.7 million.
Comparable health insurance data were first collected in 1987. The percentage of people covered by private insurance (63.9 percent) is the lowest since that year, as is the percentage of people covered by employment-based insurance (55.8 percent)
7.5 million children were without health insurance.
The number of uninsured in the South region rose from 20.2 million to 22.1 million.
That's a lot of immediate pain for people. Health reform designer Peter Orszag utilized the "political economy of delayed implementation."
Another reform foundation shifts financial risk from employer to tapped out governments and struggling individuals. Major help for the public is on the way come 2014.
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