FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 6, 2011                                                                

Contact: Nikki Reen (267.295.3859 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

 New Data Finds Young Adults in Southeastern PA Face Health Care Barriers

 PHILADELPHIA—A recent report concluded that young adults between the ages of 18 and 29 are more likely to be uninsured than any other age group. According to the latest figures, in 2008, approximately 14 million young adults in America were living without health insurance coverage.* Contrary to the myth that young people do not need health insurance, one in six adults has a chronic illness like cancer, diabetes or asthma, according to US Department of Health and Human Resources.  Experts have long concluded that as compared to those with insurance, those without are apt to face more health conditions and die younger.**

 Advocates of the Affordable Care Act of 2010, which includes a provision that allows young adults under 26 to remain on a parent’s health insurance, predict it may assist the majority of uninsured young adults in acquiring health insurance coverage. Researchers at Public Health Management Corporation’s Community Health Data Base examined data from the 2010 Southeastern Pennsylvania Household Health Survey, with a particular focus on the health insurance coverage and well-being of young adults ages 18-29  who live in the five-county Southeastern Pennsylvania (SEPA) region of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties. “With the advent of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 and extended coverage for youth up to age 26, it is important to track factors that might affect the health of young adults in Southeastern Pennsylvania,” said Francine Axler, director of CHDB and senior research associate.

 Selected findings indicate:

•  More than one-fifth of young adults 18-29 years of age (20.8%) do not have health insurance coverage, representing 103,600 young adults in the SEPA region
• As compared with every other age group, young adults are most likely to not have health insurance coverage: 0-5 years (3.2%), 6-12 years (3.1%), 13-17 years (4.0%), 30-49 years (11.0%), and 50-64 years (6.8%)
• Among young adults 18-29 years of age, young adult men (23.4%) are more likely than young adult women (18.4%) to not have health insurance coverage
• More than two-fifths of Latino young adults (44.2%) are without health insurance, compared with Asian young adults (22.6%), black young adults (21.5%), and white young adults (15.7%)

 Young adults also have less access to a regular source of health care, such as a primary care provider or a dentist. Health professionals associate having health insurance and a regular source of health care with better quality of care and continuity of care.***

•  One-fifth of young adults 18-29 years of age (20.0%) do not have a regular source of care, compared with adults 30-49 years (11.2%), adults 50-64 years (7.4%), and adults 65 years or older (5.2%)
• Among young adults, young adult men (22.5%) are more likely than young adult women (17.8%) to not have a regular source of care
• One-third of Latino young adults (33.4%) do not have a regular source of care, compared with 21.0% of black young adults, 19.4% of Asian young adults, and 17.4% of white young adults
• Thirty-eight percent of young adults have not been to a dentist in the past year, compared with adults 30-49 years (28.4%), adults 50-64 years (26.7%), and adults 65 years or older (32.3%)
• More than 30% of young adults have had to forego dental care during the past year due to cost factors, compared with adults 30-49 years (26.6%), adults 50-64 years (24.2%), and adults 65 years or older (14.1%)

 To access the full findings on young adults and health insurance coverage in Southeastern Pennsylvania, contact Francine Axler at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 215.985.2521.

 * Collins, Sara R., & Nicholson, Jennifer L. Rite of Passage: Young Adults and the Affordable Care Act of 2010.” The Commonwealth Fund, 2010.

 ^** “Insuring America's Health.” Institute of Medicine. Washington, DC: National Academy Press (2004): p. xi. Web. 24 June 2011.

*** “CDC Study Indicates Many Americans Lack Regular Source of Health Care.” www.aafp.org. American Academy of Family Physicians. Web. 18 Dec. 2007.

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 About CHDB

Public Health Management Corporation’s CHDB Household Health Survey is one of the largest regional health surveys in the country. The Pew Charitable Trusts; William Penn Foundation; United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania; United Way of North Penn; CIGNA Foundation; Green Tree Community Health Foundation; Philadelphia Foundation; North Penn Community Health Foundation and the Thomas Scattergood Foundation and over 350 local agencies from the health, government, nonprofit and academic sectors help to support the CHDB. To view previous data news releases, please click here. For more information, please visit http://www.chdbdata.org/.

 About PHMC