One in six mothers of children under 19 in the United States lacks health insurance, according to an analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Although 90% of uninsured mothers are part of a working family, they do not have access to affordable health care through their or their spouses’ jobs. Most are also ineligible for Medicaid or other publicly subsidized insurance because they are not far enough below the poverty line. In 25 states, a working mother of two is ineligible for Medicaid if her income is greater than $9,780. Other states have similarly low cutoff rates. The report points out that significant progress has been made in providing children with insurance, but has left mothers behind. This leaves low-income families, especially those headed by single moms, vulnerable to financial devastation in the event of an injury or serious illness and discourages mothers from seeking preventative and primary care.
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