Health News
- Kentucky's Uninsured Rate Continues To Drop; Now 9 Percent
The share of Kentuckians who have no health coverage has dropped to 9 percent, according to the latest data from The Gallup Organization. That makes Kentucky second, following Arkansas, among the states in the percentage of formerly uninsured who now...
- Economic Upturn Boosts Share Of Kentuckians On Employer-based Health Coverage; Health Reform Boosts Number On Public Plans
Half of Kentucky's working-age adults now get health insurance through their employers, up from 37 percent two years ago, reversing a downward trend that began with the Great Recession. Meanwhile, under federal health reform, many more Kentuckians...
- Exit Poll: Half Of Voters Say Kynect Works Well, But Almost As Many Say Obamacare Went Too Far; 45% Favor Pot Legalization
An exit poll of voters in Tuesday's election showed that half of them thought the state's health-insurance exchange, Kynect, is working well, but almost as many thought the federal health-reform law went too far. Asked how Kynect is working, 21...
- Kynect Enrollment Accelerates As Monday Deadline Nears; Call Center To Be Open Form 8 To 4:30 Saturday And Sunday
Enrollment in coverage through the state's Kynect health-insurance exchange is accelerating as Monday's deadline for open enrollment approached. State officials reported Friday that the rate has surpassed 4,000 per day, bringing the total to more...
- Poll Finds That 79 Percent Of Kentuckians, Including 60 Percent Of Republicans, Support Beshear's Expansion Of Medicaid
By Melissa Patrick and Al Cross Kentucky Health News Kentuckians strongly support Gov. Steve Beshear's decision to make hundreds of thousands more of them eligible for Medicaid under the federal health-reform law, according to a statewide poll taken...
Health News
30% of uninsured Kentuckians still don't know about Kynect health-insurance exchange despite heavy advertising, poll finds
By Melissa Landon and Al Cross
Kentucky Health News
Kynect, Kentucky's online marketplace for health insurance, launched on Oct. 1 under the federal health-reform law. In a poll taken from Oct. 26 to Nov. 25, about 77 percent of Kentuckians said they knew about it, but only 70 percent of those without health coverage said they did.
Kynect has used federal funds for a heavy advertising and outreach campaign, but the Kentucky Health Issues Poll found that 30 percent of the uninsured had heard "only a little" about it, and another 30 percent said they had heard "nothing at all," the phrases used in the poll. While they have had more time since the poll to learn about the exchange, the poll results suggest that more outreach is needed to fulfill the law's objective of getting health coverage for as many people as possible. March 31 is this year's enrollment deadline.
Kynect Executive Director Carrie Banahan told Linda Blackford of the Lexington Herald-Leader that the ads and outreach will continue, and the exchange is making extra efforts to reach young people. The poll found that among people aged 18 to 29, adults without high-school diplomas, residents of Northern Kentucky, and people whose household income is 138 percent or less of the federal poverty threshold, 32 percent of each group "reported hearing 'nothing at all' about Kynect," said the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, which sponsored the poll with Interact for Health, formerly the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati.
The report mentioned those earning 138 percent of poverty or less because they are newly eligible for free coverage under Medicaid, the federal-state program for the poor and disabled. Those who make more, up to $94,000 for a family of four, are eligible for federal tax subsidies for policies bought through Kynect. On the exchange, people can find out whether they are qualified for Medicaid and the Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program, look for individual and small-business insurance plans, and see if they qualify for payment assistance or tax credits.
The poll indicated that the uninsured are looking for information about Kynect. About 20 percent of adult Kentuckians reported seeking information about it, but 36 percent of uninsured adults did.
Kentucky Health News
Kynect, Kentucky's online marketplace for health insurance, launched on Oct. 1 under the federal health-reform law. In a poll taken from Oct. 26 to Nov. 25, about 77 percent of Kentuckians said they knew about it, but only 70 percent of those without health coverage said they did.
Kynect Executive Director Carrie Banahan told Linda Blackford of the Lexington Herald-Leader that the ads and outreach will continue, and the exchange is making extra efforts to reach young people. The poll found that among people aged 18 to 29, adults without high-school diplomas, residents of Northern Kentucky, and people whose household income is 138 percent or less of the federal poverty threshold, 32 percent of each group "reported hearing 'nothing at all' about Kynect," said the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky, which sponsored the poll with Interact for Health, formerly the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati.
The report mentioned those earning 138 percent of poverty or less because they are newly eligible for free coverage under Medicaid, the federal-state program for the poor and disabled. Those who make more, up to $94,000 for a family of four, are eligible for federal tax subsidies for policies bought through Kynect. On the exchange, people can find out whether they are qualified for Medicaid and the Kentucky Children's Health Insurance Program, look for individual and small-business insurance plans, and see if they qualify for payment assistance or tax credits.
The poll indicated that the uninsured are looking for information about Kynect. About 20 percent of adult Kentuckians reported seeking information about it, but 36 percent of uninsured adults did.
- Kentucky's Uninsured Rate Continues To Drop; Now 9 Percent
The share of Kentuckians who have no health coverage has dropped to 9 percent, according to the latest data from The Gallup Organization. That makes Kentucky second, following Arkansas, among the states in the percentage of formerly uninsured who now...
- Economic Upturn Boosts Share Of Kentuckians On Employer-based Health Coverage; Health Reform Boosts Number On Public Plans
Half of Kentucky's working-age adults now get health insurance through their employers, up from 37 percent two years ago, reversing a downward trend that began with the Great Recession. Meanwhile, under federal health reform, many more Kentuckians...
- Exit Poll: Half Of Voters Say Kynect Works Well, But Almost As Many Say Obamacare Went Too Far; 45% Favor Pot Legalization
An exit poll of voters in Tuesday's election showed that half of them thought the state's health-insurance exchange, Kynect, is working well, but almost as many thought the federal health-reform law went too far. Asked how Kynect is working, 21...
- Kynect Enrollment Accelerates As Monday Deadline Nears; Call Center To Be Open Form 8 To 4:30 Saturday And Sunday
Enrollment in coverage through the state's Kynect health-insurance exchange is accelerating as Monday's deadline for open enrollment approached. State officials reported Friday that the rate has surpassed 4,000 per day, bringing the total to more...
- Poll Finds That 79 Percent Of Kentuckians, Including 60 Percent Of Republicans, Support Beshear's Expansion Of Medicaid
By Melissa Patrick and Al Cross Kentucky Health News Kentuckians strongly support Gov. Steve Beshear's decision to make hundreds of thousands more of them eligible for Medicaid under the federal health-reform law, according to a statewide poll taken...