Number of CA women without health coverage spikes

A recent report finds the percentage of adult women in California who did not have health insurance coverage rose considerably from 2007 to 2009.

While 21 percent of women between the ages of 18 and 64 lacked healthcare coverage for part or all of 2007, that ratio jumped to 24 percent in 2009 – representing roughly 2.8 million women, according to the nonprofit Public Health Institute.

The study added that younger women – those between 18 and 34 – were the least likely to have health insurance, as 34 percent of that group was without coverage in 2009. Just 37 percent had employer-based coverage. Lower-income women were also far less likely to have health insurance.

“Clearly, the implementation of the Affordable Care Act is coming at a crucial time for California women,” said Dr. Roberta Wyn, the report’s lead author. “These are challenging times, and it is important to move forward in expanding coverage and access.”

Fewer Americans as a whole currently have employer-based health plans. A recent report from Gallup and Healthways found that ratio has dropped from 48 percent in 2008 to just 45 percent last year.