At the first quarter of 2011, 1 million more young adults have health insurance coverage than a year ago, according to information released Wednesday by the National Health Interview Survey.
This 3.5 percent increase in adults between the ages of 19 and 25 is attributed to the Affordable Care Act, which allows young adults to stay on their parents’ health insurance plans until age 26.
President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act in March 2010. Since then, the number of youths covered rose from 66.1 percent in 2010 to 69.6 percent in 2011, while no other age group had a gain in coverage.
Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said studies like this are a reminder of the difference the act is making in the lives of Americans.
“That’s really a great achievement considering that more than a year ago young adults were one of the most vulnerable groups of Americans in the health insurance market,” Sebelius said Wednesday in a conference call with representatives from Health and Human Services.
She said young adults are almost twice as likely to go without health insurance compared to older adults, but the Affordable Care Act gives young adults and families freedom to choose careers not based on available health insurance.
“In a world where great inventors, entrepreneurs and CEOs can be young or old, we can’t take the chance that the next Facebook will never happen because its creator took a desk job just to get health insurance,” she said.
The Affordable Care Act aims to build a bridge to 2014, preparing the country for a new marketplace that will include state-run health insurance exchanges. Millions of Americans and small businesses will be able to purchase affordable coverage and have the same choices of insurance as members of Congress, according to the White House web site.
Jennifer Mishory, deputy director of Young Invincibles, a national organization committed to expanding opportunity for all young adults 18 to 34, said in the conference call the increase demonstrates that the health care law works for her generation.
“It’s not just about the 16 percent of us with pre-existing conditions,” Mishory said. “It’s also about those of us struggling to find a job or a job with good benefits or heading back to school with limited coverage