Analysis: 30K Ohio children lost Medicaid coverage between 2022, 2024

The number of uninsured children in Ohio has increased by 30,000 in recent years, bringing the rate of children without health care coverage to 5.6%, largely due to minors losing Medicaid and CHIP, according to new analysis (Source: “Medicaid unwinding leaves 30,000 more Ohio children without health insurance,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, Sept. 23).
 
An analysis by Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families found that the uninsured rate for Ohio children jumped from 4.5% in 2022 to 5.6% in 2025, which landed Ohio on a list of 22 states with statistically significant increases in uninsured children.

The Georgetown analysis looked at new data from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., in the U.S. Census’ American Community Survey. The analysis reviewed uninsured people under age 18 between 2022 and 2024, a period when federal pandemic coverage mandates ended and states began the process of “unwinding” and returning Medicaid to regular operations.
 
The state with the highest increase in children losing health insurance between 2022-2024 was in Texas, which disenrolled 1.3 million children, said Joan Alker, the executive director and co-founder of the Center for Children and Families.
 
Ohio’s rate of uninsured children in 2024 was slightly below the national average of 6%. The state expanded Medicaid in 2014, which allowed more adults with lower incomes on the health insurance program.
 
To learn more about unwinding in Ohio, see HPIO’s December 2023 publication “Ohio Medicaid Basics Update: Unwinding of the Medicaid Continuous Enrollment Provision.”