Rate of uninsured children up in VA as pandemic-era protections end

The report, by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, found 6% of children across the U.S. were uninsured in 2024, an 18% increase from 2022 levels. In Virginia, the rate of uninsured children is 13% lower than the national average, at 5.2%.

Allison Gilbraith, director of policy and programs at Voices for Virginia’s Children, said the end of pandemic-era protections meant thousands of families in the Commonwealth had to reestablish their eligibility.

“Their gaps in coverage aren’t a result of their family income changing but a result of a strain on the system,” Gilbraith explained. “Paperwork not getting done, families being more transient, more families are struggling with housing. These children absolutely still need health insurance coverage.”

The growth in the number of uninsured children has not been equal. Black, Latino and Indigenous children had far higher increases in uninsured rates than their white and Asian peers.

Gilbraith noted the past couple of years are an example of the bureaucratic burden leading to a rise in uninsured children, many of whom are still eligible. She pointed out new Medicaid policies will require redetermination every six months, instead of every year, which will lead to a rise in the number of uninsured children.

“Without strong safeguards and adequate resources, we are at a deep risk of backsliding on decades of progress in children’s coverage,” Gilbraith emphasized. “There are deep cuts proposed in HR 1, which would make it nearly impossible for Virginia to keep all the kids eligible.”

Virginia saw 16,000 more children uninsured in 2024, bringing the total to 103,000. Despite its lower than national uninsured rate, the Commonwealth saw a nearly identical rise in the rate of uninsured children.

Related: Number of uninsured Americans increases under Trump