Missouri Health Insurance

How healthy is living in Missouri?

Missouri was ranked #38 in the 2009 ranking of the healthiest states by the United Health Foundation.

The good news:

• For 2009 Missouri was rated among the bottom ten states in nine categories of measurement. In 2009, that number improved to just four categories.
• The state's highest ranking was again for its high school graduation rate. Of incoming ninth graders, 81 percent went on to graduate from high school in four years.
• The state's infant mortality rate decreased over the past year from 8.1 to 7.5 deaths per 1,000 live births.

The bad news:

• In Missouri, the percentage of children in poverty has risen from 14.7 percent to 18.7 percent over the past five years.
• Obesity is also on the rise, affecting 29 percent of the population, compared to 11.9 percent in 1990.

The state's best and worst category rankings:

• High school graduation – #12
• Lack of health insurance – #21
• Prevalence of obesity – #39
• Cancer deaths – #39
• Preventable hospitalizations – #40
• Poor physical health days – #42
• Cardiovascular deaths – #42
• Public health funding – #44
• Prevalence of smoking – #47

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)

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Starting in 2010, Missouri will offer health coverage to residents through the federally established temporary high-risk pool program. To find out more about Missouri's participation, click here.

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 pool to 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. Read more about 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.

Georgetown University's Guide to Health Insurance in Missouri

Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute has researched and written state-by-state guides for finding and keeping health insurance. It updates these guides as federal and state policies change. A number of non-profit organizations help fund its research. Learn more about the Health Policy Institute.

Review Georgetown's guide for Missouri.

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.