A new report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) finds, among other things:

• More middle-class Americans are uninsured.

Nationwide, the total number of uninsured, middle-class people increased by more than 2 million since 2000, to12.9 million in 2008.

• The average employee’s costs for health insurance rose, while income fell.

Nationwide, the average cost an employee paid for a family insurance policy rose 81 percent from 2000 to 2008. During the same period, median household income fell 2.5 percent (adjusted for inflation).

• Fewer people were offered, eligible for, or accepted insurance coverage through their jobs.

As costs of health insurance premiums rose, some employers stopped offering coverage benefits to employees, or changed the criteria for employees’ eligibility. While most employers still paid the lion’s share of their employees’ insurance premiums, rising costs have been passed on to workers — with some choosing to drop insurance.

The report is being released during Cover the Uninsured Week (March 14-20), a campaign organized by RWJF to advocate for health coverage for all Americans.

In Tennessee, median household income declined 8.2% from 2000 to 2008 while employer provided insurance premiums went up 45.3% for individuals and 63.5% for family coverage.

The report also says 1.3 million Tennesseans (25.3% of the population) age 0 to 64 are on government provided health care such as TennCare, an increase of 3.5% since 2000. Another 859,000 (16.4% of the population) are uninsured, up 6.4% overall and up 10% among those with income less than 200% of poverty.

Another troubling statistic about that latter category: the number receiving public assistance (i.e. TennCare) declined by 2.5% at a time when they need it the most.

On the other hand, the greatest increase (4.4%) in the number receiving government provided health care was among those with incomes greater than 400% of poverty. This suggests that employers are shifting more of the health insurance burden to taxpayers, and is another reason why health insurance should be divorced from employment.

The numbers in this report are likely worse now, because these statistics were compiled before the economy crashed and reported just as the state begins more cutbacks in TennCare.

RELATED:

• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation report
• State by state analysis