47K fewer Ohioans lack health insurance

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

The federal government reports that the number of people without health insurance in Ohio fell by 47,000 during the past year.

A report released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Tuesday says Ohio was one of 15 states that saw a decline in uninsured residents from 2012 through 2013.

According to The Columbus Dispatch, the report concluded that about 1.258 million people in Ohio — or 11 percent — were without insurance last year, either through their employer or a federal health-care program such as Medicaid.

About 1.3 million, or 11.5 percent, were without coverage in 2012.

The decline in the number of people without insurance can be attributed to an improving state economy and some sections of the 2010 federal health care law that have been phased in.