(based on 2008 data from Current Population Survey (CPS)

How many college students have health insurance?

• Eighty percent of college students aged 18 through 23 were insured through private or public sources. Of these, 67% had coverage through employer-sponsored plans, 7% through the individual market including student insurance plans, and 6% through public or government health insurance programs such as Medicaid. In addition, 87% of this insured group had coverage through another person’s policy, such as a parent.

How many college students do not have health insurance?

• The other 20 percent of college students aged 18 through 23 lacked health insurance. This population numbered about 1.7 million students.

By age?

• Older college students, aged 22 and 23, are more likely to be uninsured – 25-35% of them to be more specific.

By race and ethnicity?

• Of the uninsured college students, a larger percentage of those were non-white (38% Hispanic, 29% black, and 26% Asian) than the 15% of white students who were uninsured.

By income?

• Not surprisingly, students with lower family incomes were less likely to be insured. Family income for insured college students averaged $95,000 per year while uninsured students’ reported family income was about half that.

By region?

• College students from the West and South were more likely to be uninsured. These differences are consistent with the general population.