Nebraska Health Insurance

How healthy is living in Nebraska?

Nebraska fell to #16 in the 2009 ranking of the healthiest states by the United Health Foundation.

The good news:

• The state had the top rating in the country for poor physical health days, and the #2 rating for poor mental health days.
• Other good news: The prevalence of smoking has been on the decline over the past 10 years, dropping from 22 percent of the population to 18.3 percent.
• Just one state – Wisconsin – had a better graduation rate for 2009.

The bad news:

• Nebraska saw notable decline in three categories. Immunization coverage was worse, falling from 85.2 percent to 74.8 percent of children ages 19 to 35 months. The percentage of children poverty has also risen over the past five years, and over the past decade, the prevalence of obesity has dramatically increased. More than 27 percent of the state's population was categorized as obese in 2009, compared to 11.6 percent a decade ago.
• Just four states had a higher prevalance of binge drinking.

The state's best and worst category rankings:

• Poor physical health days – #1
• High school graduation – #2
• Poor mental health days – #2
• Infant mortality – #8
• Air pollution – #10
• Occupational fatalities – #36
• Immunization coverage – #36
• Prevalence of binge drinking – #46

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

Does Nebraska have a risk pool for the uninsurable?

Nebraska Comprehensive Health Insurance Pool
(402) 343-3574 or toll-free 1-877-348-4304 (M-F 8am-4:30pm)

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

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 Nebraska and all other states.
• Its guide on how to find health insurance in Nebraska.
• Materiales En Español – Guías para encontrar cobertura de seguro de salud.

Georgetown University's Guide to Health Insurance in Nebraska

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 Nebraska.

USNews health insurance rankings for Nebraska

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 Nebraska.

Official State Goverment Sites with Nebraska Health Insurance Information

Nebraska Medicaid -- providing health care services to eligible elderly and disabled individuals and eligible low-income pregnant women, children and parents.

Nebraska Kids Connection -- health care coverage for qualified children developed by the State of Nebraska. It includes both the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and the Nebraska Medical Assistance Program (also known as Medicaid).