Note: This table shows that a very small portion of all U.S. children - 2.7 percent - did not get the medical care they needed (i.e., had an "unmet medical need") in 2000-01. This remained statistically unchanged compared to 1996-97. Nevertheless, this represents almost 2 million children with an unmet need. The children who were most likely to have an unmet need in 2000-01 included those children with family income below the federal poverty level, black children, and children in fair or poor health. Also, uninsured children were considerably more likely to have an unmet need than their insured counterparts, whereas those with private health insurance were the least likely to have an unmet need.
| Percent with an Unmet Medical Need | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-97 | 1998-99 | 2000-01 | ||
| U.S. Children Total | 3.2 | 3.1 | 2.7 | |
| Family Income | Below Poverty | 5.9 | 5.8 | 4.2 |
| 100-199% of poverty | 3.6 | 4.0 | 3.5 | |
| 200-399% of poverty | 2.4 | 1.8 | 2.3 | |
| 400% of poverty and above | 1.7 | 1.9 | 1.8 | |
| Age | Less than 6 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 2.6 |
| 6-12 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 2.6 | |
| 13-17 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 2.9 | |
| Race/Ethnicity | White | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.2 |
| Black | 3.9 | 3.9 | 4.4 | |
| Hispanic | 5.0 | 3.4 | 3.0# | |
| Other | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.7 | |
| Health Status | Excellent or very good | 2.3 | 2.5 | 2.0 |
| Good | 4.9 | 6.1 | 5.6 | |
| Fair or Poor | 14.4 | 7.5* | 7.7 | |
| Insurance Type | Employer-sponsored | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.8 |
| Other private | 2.4 | 2.9 | 1.4 | |
| Medicaid and other state1 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 3.7 | |
| Other coverage2 | 2.7 | 3.2 | 3.8 | |
| Uninsured | 9.7 | 7.7 | 7.1 | |
| Metro size | Large metro area3 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.7# |
| Small metro4 | 0.7 | 5.2* | 2.2# | |
| Non-metro areas | 2.8 | 2.1 | 3.0 | |
| Region | Northeast | 3.3 | 1.8* | 2.6 |
| Midwest | 2.8 | 2.6 | 2.2 | |
| South | 3.2 | 4.2 | 2.8* | |
| West | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.1 | |
SOURCE QUESTION: "During the past 12 months, was there any time when you didn’t get the medical care you needed?"
DATE SOURCE: Community Tracking Study Household Survey.
1 Includes State Children’s Health Insurance Program coverage.
2 Includes military coverage (such as CHAMPUS/Tricare), Indian Health Service coverage, and coverage not included in any other category.
3 Metro area with population greater than 200,000 people.
4 Metro area with population equal to or less than 200,000 people.
* Change from previous round is statistically significant at p<.05.
# Change from 1996-97 to 2000-01 is statistically significant at p<.05.