I wish to provide some perspective on the state of healthcare amongst Millennials and how it relates to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). 30% of young adults are uninsured. One in five of every uninsured individual is a young adult. This is higher than any other group, and it’s around three times higher than uninsured children. Given that one in six adults experience chronic illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, or asthma this statistic is shocking and concerning.
The cause is lack of high-wage jobs with employer-sponsored healthcare; most Millennials work entry-level positions, part-time work, or in small businesses that do not offer adequate healthcare plans. Another is the dependent provision in the ACA, which forces young adults to come off their parents’ employer-based healthcare policies at the age of 26. This creates gaps in coverage and services for working class career Millennials over 26 who cannot afford the higher premium policies. This leaves Millennials at risk of chronic illness and poverty due to the out-of-pocket costs they incur. In fact, it’s so financially debilitating, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) who oversees the ACA marketplace stated in 2024 that, “nearly half of uninsured young adults report problems paying medical bills.”
Millennials are not reaching life milestones at the same age as Baby Boomers and medical debt is a large reason. Expanding Medicare for everyone and forgiving medical debt would save Americans money in out-of-pocket costs, prescription medications, decrease the federal budget spent on private healthcare, and cover preventative services that are necessary to avoid chronic illness. This would help reduce poverty, decrease income inequality, and help Americans live a healthier way of life.
Kristopher Alvarez
BGSU Graduate School of Social Work
Holland Ohio
