Note to ObamaCare haters: The uninsured rate keeps falling

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
In what is likely a sign that ObamaCare is extending health insurance to more Americans as intended, the uninsured rate fell markedly to start the year, according to Gallup data released Monday. In a little more than six months, the percentage of Americans without insurance has fallen to 15.9, down from the record high of 18 percent Gallup recorded last year.
More from Gallup:
The uninsured rate for almost every major demographic group has dropped in 2014 so far. The percentage of uninsured Americans with an annual household income of less than $36,000 has dropped the most — by 2.8 percentage points — to 27.9 percent since the fourth quarter of 2013, while the percentage of uninsured blacks has fallen 2.6 points to 18.3 percent. Hispanics remain the subgroup most likely to lack health insurance, with an uninsured rate of 37.9 percent. [Gallup]
In other words, demographics with some of the highest uninsured rates — the very demographics ObamaCare is intended to benefit most — are seeing significant improvements in their rates of coverage.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Now, it's still too early to peg all of the drop on the health care law. But the clear trend over the past few months strongly points to the fact that ObamaCare is indeed reducing the number of people without coverage. A continuation of that trend will only make the link that much stronger. And that's why Democrats aren't, despite what Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) may say, in any rush to abandon the law: As it begins to take hold, and more people get covered, support for the law could well become an asset for Democrats.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
-
Biden creates White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention
Speed Read The office will be led by Vice President Kamala Harris
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Chairman Jordan
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 23, 2023
Daily Briefing Sen. Bob Menendez rejects calls to resign following indictment, Ukraine launches missile attack on occupied Crimean city, and more
By Justin Klawans Published
-
FDA to re-evaluate effectiveness of common nasal congestion ingredient
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
A flesh-eating bacteria is growing in numbers due to climate change
Speed Read
By Devika Rao Published
-
CDC recommends new RSV vaccine for infants under 8 months
Speed Read
By Devika Rao Published
-
U.S. health agency advises easing federal marijuana restrictions
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Medicare drug price negotiations start with 1st 10 drugs, pharmaceutical industry lawsuits
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Air pollution may be increasing antibiotic resistance, new research suggests
Speed Read
By Devika Rao Published
-
Tick bites could cause an allergy to red meat, CDC says
Speed Read
By Devika Rao Published
-
The danger of drinking too much water
Speed Read
By Devika Rao Published