Description

PHINSUR indicates whether the respondent reported being covered by a private (i.e., employment-based or privately-purchased, not government) insurance plan during the preceding calendar year.

The term "covered by private insurance" in the direct question posed to respondents is ambiguous; coverage might mean either being a private insurance policyholder or having coverage as a dependent via someone else's private insurance policy. Because some respondents interpreted the question in the former, narrower sense, the identification of persons covered by private insurance (either as policyholders or as dependents) via the Bureau's allocation program in COVERPI is more complete than the private health insurance coverage reported in PHINSUR.

Comparability

User Note: For a set of variables that addresses many of the comparability issues in the CPS health insurance measures, see the summary health insurance variables created by the University of Minnesota's State Health Access Data Assistance Center.

Beginning in 2019, the definition of "private" health insurance changes to include TRICARE and Marketplace coverage as well as employment-based and directly-purchased private health plans. PHINSUR is comparable across this change. PRVTCOVLY indicates whether the respondent was covered by private health insurance during the previous year according to the 2019 definition. For more information on the changes in the 2019 ASEC, see here.

Universe

Flags

Unharmonized Variables

• UH_DIR_A1
• UH_GRP_A1
• UH_HVHI_A1
• UH_ZHVHI_A1