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PHOENIX — New data from the Census Bureau shows that “the number of Arizonans without health insurance jumped to more than 800,000 last year, the third consecutive year of increases for the state,” according to Cronkite News.
The share of Arizonans without health insurance rose from 10.6% to 11.3% last year — over 2% higher than the national average. Arizona’s uninsured rate is the ninth-worst in the nation.
The report notes that the rise in the uninsured rate is attributable to “a number of factors, not the least of which is uncertainty about the availability of coverage under the Affordable Care Act after years of attack by the Trump administration.”
Donald Trump continues to repeatedly lie about his efforts to strike down the ACA in federal court and has erroneously claimed that he is going to protect pre-existing conditions. If Trump’s federal lawsuit is successful, nearly 300,000 Arizonans could lose coverage, and protections for nearly 2.8 million Arizonans with pre-existing conditions would be at risk.
In response, Arizona Democratic Party spokesperson Tyler Cherry released the following statement:
“The Affordable Care Act has protected roughly 2.8 million Arizonans with pre-existing conditions. But now, thanks to Donald Trump’s relentless attempts to rip away health care from millions of people, the future of the ACA hangs in the balance and is on the ballot this election. Health care is top of mind for Arizona families, who are looking for leaders to protect — not undermine — their health care coverage and protections for pre-existing conditions, especially in the middle of a global pandemic when complications from COVID-19 could become the next deniable pre-existing condition. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are those leaders.”
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