Hispanics Without Health Insurance

Hispanics are less likely to have health insurance than any other segment of the population. The problem is particularly acute among those of working age—18 to 64. According to a CDC study, fully 41.5 percent of Hispanics aged 18 to 64 did not have health insurance in 2011-13. Among non-Hispanic Whites in the age group, a much smaller 15.1 percent were uninsured.

It gets worse. The likelihood that working-age Hispanics have health insurance depends on where they were born. Among those born in the United States, a smaller 25.9 percent are uninsured. Among foreign-born Hispanics, the 54.7 percent majority does not have health insurance. There are also big differences in insurance coverage by Hispanic ethnicity. The percentage of Hispanics aged 18 to 64 who are without health insurance ranges from a low of 15.1 percent among Cuban Hispanics born in the United States to a high of 59.7 percent among foreign-born Mexican Hispanics. 

Source: CDC, Vital Signs: Leading Causes of Death, Prevalence of Diseases and Risk Factors, and Use of Health Services among Hispanics in the United States—2009-2013