No Surprises in Health Insurance Stats

From the New York Times, “The Divided States of Health Care

“Those who lack health insurance now are far more likely to live in states that usually vote Republican — the states whose senators and representatives are least likely to support a law to extend coverage.”

“The figures show that residents of blue states are far more likely to have health insurance than are residents of red states, with residents of purple states in the middle.”

“Children in Texas, the state with the least health insurance, are more than eight times as likely not to have it than children in Massachusetts, the state with the broadest coverage.”

“Another way of looking at the figures is to imagine two Senates — one chosen by the 25 states where residents are more likely to have health insurance, and the other chosen by the 25 states where there is less insurance.

“The Senate from the states with less insurance would have 30 Republicans and 20 Democrats. But the one from the states with more health insurance would have a 40-to-10 Democratic majority.”

Within “red” states, the districts with the least insured people tend to be minority districts that vote Democratic. However, many of the red states still have worse numbers for health insurance even with those districts excluded.

Tells you something.