Comptroller: Nearly 1 Million New Yorkers Lack Health Insurance
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The Affordable Care Act has helped more New Yorkers gain access to health care, but still more than one in 10 residents are not insured, city Comptroller Scott Stringer said Monday.
The comptroller released an analysis that found that more than 962,000 New Yorkers, or 11.4 percent of the population, lack health insurance. That is an improvement of 2 percentage points from 2013 and the first time the number has dipped below 1 million in the past five years, Stringer said.
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Stringer noted that neighborhoods with large immigrant and younger populations -- such as Sunnyside, Jackson Heights and Corona in Queens and Bushwich in Brooklyn -- saw much higher rates, with more than 22 percent of residents lacking coverage.
"Close to a million New Yorkers do not have the basic health care coverage that they're entitled to have," Stringer told 1010 WINS. "Obamacare is for everyone."
The report was issued to coincide with the Affordable Care Act open enrollment period, which runs from Nov. 1 to Dec. 15 for coverage beginning Jan. 1.
"Being uninsured can have real economic and health consequences for you and your family," Stringer said. "So my message today is this: The open enrollment period for Obamacare has just begun. We have just a few weeks to get moving, find these New Yorkers and get them signed up for health insurance. Now is the time to take action."
The state health care exchange can be accessed at nystateofhealth.ny.gov.