Missouri Health Insurance

How healthy is living in Missouri?

Missouri fell three spots – from 38th to 35th – in the 2008 ranking of the healthiest states by the United Health Foundation.

The good news:

• The state's highest ranking was for its high school graduation rate. Of incoming ninth graders, 80.6 went on to graduate from high school in four years.
• The state's incidence of infectious disease (11 cases per 1,000 live births) was roughly half of the national average. What's more, the rate has dropped from 29.2 cases per 1,000 live births in the past five years.

The bad news:

• For 2008, Missouri was rated among the bottom ten states in nine categories of measurement.
• The state was ranked 45th for its percentage of children in poverty (22.1%), which increased from 17.7 percent in 2007.
• Meanwhile, Missouri's rating for immunization coverage plummeted from #5 in 2007 to #41 last year as the percent of children ages 19 to 35 months dropped from 85.2 percent to 77.2 percent.
• The incidence of obesity in Missouri was also slightly higher in 2008 than 2007, but dramatically higher – climbing from 11.9 percent to 28.2 percent – since 1990.

The state's best and worst category rankings:

• High school graduation – 15th (80.6 percent of ninth graders eventually graduate)
• Poor physical health days – 41st
• Immunization coverage – 41st
• Infant mortality – 41st
• Preventable hospitalizations – 41st
• Cardiovascular deaths – 42nd
• Poor mental health days – 43rd
• Children (under 18) in poverty – 45th
• Public health funding – 45th
• Prevalence of smoking – 47th

See the United Health Foundation's latest findings on Missouri.

Does Missouri have a risk pool for the uninsurable?

Missouri Health Insurance Pool
Phone 1-800-843-6447 (All but NW Missouri)
Phone 1-800-645-8346 (NW Missouri)

Risk pools are state-sponsored programs to help people with a history of medical problems in their family to purchase coverage. These pools are for people who can afford to buy health insurance, but are not able to get underwritten in the private market because of a pre-existing health condition. These programs can vary significantly from state-to-state in price, benefits and number of people served. Often insurance companies doing business in the state are required to contribute to the poolto keep it in the black. In the best cases they allow people to be able to switch jobs or become self-employed without the fear of losing their health insurance coverage. Find more on risk pools here.

Cover The Uninsured's guide on finding health insurance in Missouri

Cover The Uninsured is a national effort to highlight the fact that too many Americans are living without health insurance and to demand solutions from our nation's leaders. Read more information on its efforts. It is a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

• Cover The Uninsured's facts on the uninsured in Missouri and all other states.
• Its guide on how to find health insurance in Missouri.
• Materiales En Español – Guías para encontrar cobertura de seguro de salud.

USNews health insurance rankings for Missouri

US News does an annual ranking of what it considers the best health insurance plans in each state. Visit its reports on various health insurance or medical insurance plans being offered in Missouri.

Official State Goverment Sites with Missouri Health Insurance Information

Missouri Department of Insurance -- Health Insurance page -- links to publications provided by the State of Missouri.

MO HealthNet Division (Medicaid) -- the purpose of the MO HealthNet Division is to purchase and monitor health care services for low income and vulnerable citizens of the State of Missouri.

MO HealthNet for Kids -- part of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), it is a health insurance program for children of low-income families.

Health Care Advocacy Groups in Missouri

Cover Missouri – Cover Missouri is a project of the Missouri Foundation for Health to develop, publish, and promote specific policy recommendations to increase the number of Missourians with health coverage.