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Abstract:
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Understanding the drivers of the perceived need for health insurance may influence policymakers' capacity to affect the rate of insurance among Hispanics and non-Hispanics. This research paper analyzes the effect of demographics, attitudes and health status on the perceived need for health insurance among uninsured Hispanic and non-Hispanics adults. The paper uses Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) 2003 Full-Year data. Among uninsured Hispanics, 39% believe they are healthy enough and do not need health insurance compared to 31% of non-Hispanics. The results suggest that demographics such as age, family size and presence of dependents are important factors for non-Hispanics; however, they are not important factors within the Hispanic subpopulation. Further, this study found that there are differences in the magnitude of the effects of key attitudes such as perceived cost of insurance and risk aversion that further highlight differences between the two populations. The most significant policy implication suggests that the perceived need, for these two populations, are affected by dissimilar variables, and these subpopulations must be treated distinctly. |