AHRQ Stats

About 12 percent of adults in 2011 agreed with the statement "I'm healthy enough that I really don't need health insurance," compared with 9 percent of adults in 2001. About 24 percent of adults in 2011 agreed with the statement "Health insurance is not worth the money it costs," compared with nearly 22 percent of adults in 2001. (Source: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Statistical Brief #433: Attitudes toward Health Insurance and Their Persistence over Time, Adults, 2001-2011.)

STATISTICAL BRIEF #433:
Attitudes toward Health Insurance and Their Persistence over Time, Adults, 2001–2011

April 2014

Steven B. Cohen, PhD

Highlights

In 2011, 12.1 percent of adults agreed with the statement "I'm healthy enough that I really don't need health insurance," in contrast to only 9.0 percent of adults in the prior decade (2001). In addition, 24.3 percent of adults agreed with the statement "Health insurance is not worth the money it costs" in 2011 relative to 21.8 percent of adults in 2001.
An examination of the persistence in attitudes over a two-year interval also revealed substantial shifts in preferences within individuals over time. For years 2010 and 2011, 12.6 percent of the same individuals indicated "health insurance is not worth the money it costs" in both years, in contrast to 9.8 percent for the 2001–2002 period. In addition, 5.2 percent of the same individuals indicated "I'm healthy enough that I really don't need health insurance" in 2010 and 2011 in contrast to 3.2 percent for 2001–2002.
In both 2001 and 2011, uninsured adults ages 18–64 were substantially more likely to indicate they were healthy and did not need health insurance, relative to their insured counterparts. They were also more likely to indicate that health insurance was not worth its cost, relative to those with coverage.