U.S. Census Bureau Releases New Figures on the Uninsured

"Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007," U.S. Census Bureau: The Census Bureau on Tuesday released findings from the Current Population Survey that show both the percentage and number of U.S. residents without health insurance decreased in 2007. The percentage of U.S residents without health insurance was 15.3% in 2007, down from 15.8% in 2006, and the number of uninsured was 45.7 million in 2007, down from 47 million in 2006. The percentage of people covered by private health insurance fell from 67.9% in 2006 to 67.5% in 2007, while the share of people covered by public programs such as Medicaid rose from 27% to 27.8% ("Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2007," August 2008).