Kaiser Family Foundation Essay Discusses Public Willingness To Shift From Employer-Based Health Care System; CDC Examines Percentage of Uninsured U.S. Residents

• "Moving Away From Employer-Based Coverage: Don't Forget Public Opinion," Kaiser Family Foundation: In the essay, Kaiser Family Foundation President and CEO Drew Altman explores a factor that has not received much attention but that will be important for the success of any proposal to move away from the current employer-based health care system: public willingness to accept such a change. Public attitudes are examined in the context of very different proposals from liberals and conservatives to move away from employment-based coverage. The essay is the latest installment of a new Foundation series, titled "Pulling It Together ... from Drew Altman" (Kaiser Family Foundation release, 6/26).
  
  
• "State, Regional, and National Estimates of Health Insurance Coverage for People Under 65 Years of Age: National Health Interview Survey, 2004-2006," National Center for Health Statistics: The report finds that New England had the lowest percentage of uninsured individuals younger than age 65 from 2004 to 2006, and the Southwest had the highest. According to the report, about 9% of New Englanders were uninsured during that time. In the Southwest, 18.2% of children and nearly 30% of adults were uninsured during the 2004-2006 period. Nationwide, 16.6% of the population was uninsured during that time. The report is based on data from the 2004-2006 National Health Interview Survey. In a separate report, CDC released preliminary national data for 2007 that showed 43.1 million U.S. residents, or 14.5% of the total population, were uninsured at a point in time in 2007. In addition, almost 9% of children ages 18 and under went without insurance at a point in time in 2007, the preliminary data show. That report, which also estimates enrollment in high deductible health plans, was based on the 2007 National Health Interview Survey (National Center for Health Statistics release, 6/25).