Small percentage losing health coverage due to ACA

Individuals whose health insurance policies are being cancelled due to the Affordable Care Act constitute less than 1% of the healthcare insurance market, according to a recent study.

The study, sponsored by the nonprofit organization Families USA, points out that the changes resulting in cancellation notices affect people who purchase coverage on the private, non-group market, or 5.7% of the population under age 65 (the eligibility age for Medicare.) Their findings:

• 71% of that group have incomes at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, making them either eligible for government subsidies to purchase their insurance or for coverage through Medicaid.

• Of the remaining 29%, historically about 35%-or .6% of non-elderly adults-historically have kept individual coverage for more than 1 year. “These are the only people who can lose the individual coverage they otherwise would have retained and who are not income-eligible for…subsidies or Medicaid,” the report says.

The report also provides a state-by-state look at the individual health insurance market for those under 65. North Dakota leads all states, with 10.8% of its residents buying coverage on the individual market, while West Virginia has the smallest proportion, with 1.7%. Among people under 65 with individual coverage and income at or below the federal poverty level, Idaho leads with 82%, while Alaska has 0%.