To compare health insurance coverage estimates from the American Community Survey (ACS) to the Current Population Survey (CPS‐ASEC).
Data Sources/Study Setting
The 2008 ACS and CPS‐ASEC, 2009.
We compare age‐specific national rates for all coverage types and state‐level rates of uninsurance and means‐tested coverage. We assess differences using ‐tests and ‐values, which are reported at <.05, <.01, and <.001. An ‐test determines whether differences significantly varied by state.
Despite substantial design differences, we find only modest differences in coverage estimates between the surveys. National direct purchase and state‐level means‐tested coverage levels for children show the largest differences.
We suggest that the ACS is well poised to become a useful tool to health services researchers and policy analysts, but that further study is needed to identify sources of error and to quantify its bias.
