Summary

About 150,000 people still don’t have insurance in King County, even though the number of uninsured residents in King County was cut in half by the Affordable Care Act and other measures in recent years. King County Executive Dow Constantine announced a series of steps to bring universal coverage to the region.

Story

In King County, about 92 percent of adults and 98 percent of children have health insurance, making it one of the nation’s brightest Affordable Care Act success stories.

However, nearly 150,000 people remain uninsured, and nearly a third of them are non-citizens.

A Board of Health resolution brought forward by Seattle Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda and King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski, working in partnership with community health care advocates, led to the King County Council requesting a study of this issue. 

Drafted by Public Health – Seattle & King County, a new report on expanding access to health care and services revealed that 92 percent of uninsured non-citizens are employed, and 27 percent live below the federal poverty level. South King County has the highest percentages of non-citizens without health insurance.

Due to their citizenship status, many of these individuals are ineligible for Medicare and Medicaid, and cannot access health plans offered through the Washington Health Benefit Exchange. Oftentimes, not having insurance leads to poorer health and higher costs of hospitalization.

“We need a statewide solution to the challenge of ensuring quality health care for everyone,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine. “King County will take immediate action to help our residents get connected to the care they need, and lay the groundwork for needed legislation. It will take strong partnerships and a sense of urgency to travel the last, most difficult mile in the journey to health coverage for all, and I appreciate the work of so many elected leaders and advocates who share our priorities.”

Executive Constantine announced that King County will fund a study exploring the feasibility of reopening the Washington State Health Insurance Pool, which provides health insurance to all Washington residents who are denied insurance. The pool’s non-Medicare plans are currently closed to new enrollment.

While federal rules bar participation in public health programs based on citizenship status, a state-only funded plan would provide greater flexibility.

In addition, Executive Constantine announced that access and outreach programs in Public Health will ramp up to better assist immigrant communities with services currently available, including primary care at public health centers, free cancer screenings, emergency medical services and more.

Executive Constantine will also engage the King County Immigrant and Refugee Commission, which was formed last year to integrate, strengthen and value immigrant and refugee communities and uphold the county’s commitment as a welcoming community.

As part of the 2021-2022 budget, Executive Constantine will seek additional investments to improve access to high-quality, affordable health care for all King County residents.

“We’ve made great progress in lowering the number of uninsured in Washington state, but we need to do more,” said Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler. “Access is still a challenge for some and especially for our undocumented community. We’re committed to improving access for everyone and King County is leading the way to study all viable options, including opening our state’s high risk pool (WSHIP). WSHIP has helped served our state well in the past and may be a viable option here.”

“The information, options and recommendations in this report are an important step forward as we work locally to combat the constant attacks on people’s access to health care we see coming from the other Washington,” said King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski. “It’s been a privilege to partner with and support Councilmember Mosqueda’s strong leadership on this effort at the Board of Health and in our 2019-20 budget at the King County Council.  Working together, I believe that we can ensure equitable access to health care services for everyone in our community and look forward to helping advance this essential work.”

“Thanks to the work of King County Public Health and Northwest Health Law Advocates, we have information about potential options for covering those who have been left out of health coverage in our region,” said Teresa Mosqueda, Chair of the Health Committee on Seattle City Council.

“Like other counties across the country, we know that it’s possible to cover everyone and that the local economy and population health benefit from such coverage.  A regional solution requires a partnership with the State for funding and local providers for a network, or a statewide plan to provide an option to cover even more of those left out or priced out. I am proud to be working with King County who has lead the way in providing health care access and coverage to our most vulnerable, and look forward to working together to implement next steps,” said Mosqueda.

Relevant links

• Regional Health Plan report
   

Quotes

We need a statewide solution to the challenge of ensuring quality health care for everyone. King County will take immediate action to help our residents get connected to the care they need, and lay the groundwork for needed legislation. It will take strong partnerships and a sense of urgency to travel the last, most difficult mile in the journey to health coverage for all, and I appreciate the work of so many elected leaders and advocates who share our priorities.

We’ve made great progress in lowering the number of uninsured in Washington state, but we need to do more. Access is still a challenge for some and especially for our undocumented community. We’re committed to improving access for everyone and King County is leading the way to study all viable options, including opening our state’s high risk pool (WSHIP). WSHIP has helped served our state well in the past and may be a viable option here.

The state is invested in finding a solution to this problem. New immigrants are often from countries that have universal health care coverage, so many people are unfamiliar even with the concept of paying for health insurance. It’s only when they try to enroll through the Health Benefits Exchange do they realize that only citizens can buy insurance there.

The Washington State Legislature put people’s access to healthcare and health equity first this past session.  We made sure that no matter what the President’s administration does, Washingtonians can count on health care coverage for pre-existing conditions, reproductive health, and a pathway for a public option.  We righted another federal wrong by making sure Pacific Islanders residing in Washington State have access to health care and dental coverage.  While the other Washington scapegoats immigrants and asylum seekers, Washingtonians stood up and said our immigrant communities are key to keeping our Washington economy working.  That is why our next step together should be making sure that regardless of immigration status, every Washingtonian needs access to health care insurance and care.

The information, options and recommendations in this report are an important step forward as we work locally to combat the constant attacks on people’s access to health care we see coming from the other Washington.  It’s been a privilege to partner with and support Councilmember Mosqueda’s strong leadership on this effort at the Board of Health and in our 2019-20 budget at the King County Council.  Working together, I believe that we can ensure equitable access to health care services for everyone in our community and look forward to helping advance this essential work.

It is truly tragic that so many people living in King County – one of the wealthiest regions in our nation – are still unable to attain quality and reliable health care without fear of breaking the bank or because of their immigration status. I applaud Executive Constantine for acting urgently to ensure health coverage for all of our neighbors – especially our most vulnerable.

Thanks to the work of King County Public Health and Northwest Health Law Advocates, we have information about potential options for covering those who have been left out of health coverage in our region. Like other counties across the country, we know that it’s possible to cover everyone and that the local economy and population health benefit from such coverage.  A regional solution requires a partnership with the State for funding and local providers for a network, or a statewide plan to provide an option to cover even more of those left out or priced out. I am proud to be working with King County who has lead the way in providing health care access and coverage to our most vulnerable, and look forward to working together to implement next steps.

Access to health care is a basic human right and the King County Immigrant Refugee Commission looks forward to working with county and other leaders to make sure that all King County residents have access to critical health services when they need them.

A health care plan that addresses comprehensive mental and dental health care is an urgent need among low income, refugee, immigrant and vulnerable communities of King County. We look forward to working with county staff, leadership and stakeholders to improve access to these much needed services.

For more information, contact:

Alex Fryer, Executive Office, 206-477-7966