Where are California's Uninsured Now? Wave 2 of the Kaiser Family Foundation California Longitudinal Panel Survey

As the open enrollment period came to a close in the spring, nearly 6 in 10 of California’s previously uninsured report gaining coverage, with the largest share (25 percent) reporting they got coverage through Medi-Cal. All told, about a third of California’s previously uninsured say they enrolled in the two types of coverage most directly tied to the ACA – Medi-Cal and plans through Covered California. Forty-two percent say they remain uninsured including 13 percent who are ineligible for Medi-Cal or Covered California due to their immigration status.

Future waves of the Kaiser Family Foundation California Longitudinal Panel Survey will continue to track this same, representative group of individuals who were uninsured before the major provisions of the ACA took effect to learn more about how people are using their coverage, their experiences finding health care providers and paying for care, and whether they shop for coverage during the next open enrollment period, remain in the same plan or become uninsured again. At the same time, future surveys will determine if some of the remaining uninsured from this wave of the survey gain coverage and what eventually brought them into the fold. They also will measure the extent to which perceived or actual barriers such as cost and immigration status keep others from getting health insurance and how those remaining uninsured fare. Returning to the same previously uninsured Californians at multiple points in time allows for a unique look at the views and experiences of this key group as they navigate new coverage options under the ACA and the changing health care system.