Financial concerns, challenges enrolling top barriers to care: Latest report on uninsured Texans

Most of the roughly five million uninsured Texans already qualify for a government health program or for federal subsidies that would help pay for coverage — but they have not signed up. Texas 2036 has launched a groundbreaking, multi-year study to find out why.

Last year, we held virtual and in-person focus group discussions across the state of Texas speaking directly to the uninsured. Here’s a glance at some of the initial findings about the barriers and personal decisions that result in not having access to affordable care:

Financial concerns and lack of certainty about eligibility are the main barriers to enrollment.

The uninsured population is dealing with medical care by either postponing it or leveraging clinics and hospitals when necessary.

The primary challenges that the uninsured face when it comes to insurance are closely intertwined: employment and finances. Not being able to access insurance through work and having to prioritize other costs are their main concerns.

Once the uninsured get to the point of enrolling in a program, it is important for them to have support from either online tutorials or a person, and for them to completely understand what the costs associated with a plan will be.

Overall, there is a lot of uncertainty associated with government health insurance programs. The uninsured either do not know much about the program, have not been enrolled in the past, or do not know if they are eligible for it.

Our latest project insights highlight the focus groups, identify challenges, propose solutions and more. Download it.