Study finds 13.7 million young adults lack health coverage

The number of uninsured young adults in the United States rose to 13.7 million in 2006 — an increase from 13.3 million in 2005 — making the 19-to-29 age group one of the largest and fastest-growing segments of the population without health insurance (Source “Young Adults at Risk: 13.7 Million Lack Health Insurance Coverage,” The Commonwealth Fund, May 30, 2008). According to a newly updated report from The Commonwealth Fund, 38 percent of high school graduates who do not attend college and 34 percent of college graduates will spend some time uninsured in the year after graduation.

Among suggestions offered by the authors of the study are that states extending Medicaid and SCHIP coverage beyond age 18 am and requiring universities to offer insurance to their full-time and part-time students.