Roughly 27 million people have likely lost job-based health coverage since the coronavirus shocked the economy, according to new estimates from the Kaiser Family Foundation. While most of these people will be able to sign up for other sources of coverage, millions will be uninsured during this pandemic. For the 27 million people who are losing their job-based coverage, about 80% have other options, according to the lead author of the report, with roughly half eligible for Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program and another third eligible for subsidized health plans on the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces. The remaining 20% are pretty much out of luck because they live in a state that did not expand Medicaid or are ineligible for other kinds of subsidized coverage.
