Advocates for the uninsured said the figures underscored the need to shore up public insurance programs.
"While this decline is a temporary victory for kids, we fear next year's data will paint a worse picture for America's children than ever before, as the effects of a sluggish economy will be coupled with the inability of Congress to pass renewal of the State Children's Health Insurance Program over President Bush's two vetoes," said Bruce Lesley, president of First Focus, a children's advocacy group.
Kevin Hayden, who oversees government contracting for WellPoint Inc., the nation's largest private health insurance company with 35 million enrollees, said he didn't consider the shift toward government coverage as a mark against the private industry, but rather as "an opportunity for the private sector and the government to work together."
He said WellPoint administered government insurance programs, such as Medicaid, in several states, and he saw an expansion of public coverage as a good option for people who didn't have access to employer-sponsored coverage and couldn't afford or qualify for coverage on their own.
The "modest decline" in the uninsured did not "reduce the urgency of the crisis," said Karen Ignagni, president of the trade group America's Health Insurance Plans. She noted that the private health insurance industry had made a series of proposals over the last two years aimed at covering the uninsured, improving quality and containing costs. In fact, the industry has proposed further expanding government coverage for low-income and chronically ill residents.
Ron Pollock, president of advocacy group Families USA, said the figures showed the toll that expensive insurance premiums were taking on private coverage, which remains the primary entree to healthcare for most Americans.
"Healthcare premiums have been rising much quicker than paychecks," Pollock said. "So a lot of businesses across the country are feeling they cannot sustain the healthcare coverage they used to provide for their workers, or they are requiring workers to pay more in premiums and deductibles. And, as a result, many of the workers can no longer afford coverage."
Individuals who don't have health coverage through their jobs also are facing rising premiums, Pollock said, "and more people are priced out of the healthcare they used to take for granted."
Cherry-picking also "continues to be a big problem" in this market, he said, referring to a practice by which insurers in California and most states can exclude consumers with pre-existing medical conditions.
The rate of people buying private coverage on their own declined to 8.9% from 9.1%.
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lisagirion@latimes.com
