Insurance coverage tied to pediatric cancer death rate: 4 notes

Uninsured children and adolescents with cancer have a higher risk of dying within five years compared to their peers with private insurance, according to a Dec. 15 Scientific American report. 

Here are four notes from the report:

1. Between 2022 and 2024, the rate of uninsured children in the U.S. grew from 5.1% to 6%, with 4 million U.S. children lacking health insurance in 2024.
   
   
2. Many uninsured children are eligible for Medicaid through the Children’s Health Insurance Program but are not enrolled. Low enrollment may be attributed to “bureaucratic red tape” adding complexity to the enrollment process and deportation fears, the report said.
   
   
3. According to a 2020 study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology of more than 58,000 children and adolescents younger than 20, 11% of uninsured children received no cancer-directed treatment, compared to 6.7% of children with private insurance.
   
   Uninsured children were 31% more likely to be diagnosed at a later stage and 32% more likely to die within five years of a cancer diagnosis compared to children with private insurance, the study found.
   
   Children with Medicaid also had a higher risk of dying compared to children with private insurance.
   
   
4. A study published in 2024 in Pediatric Blood & Cancer of more than 30,000 children and adolescents younger than 20 who were diagnosed with cancer between 2006 and 2013 found that children with intermittent Medicaid coverage were twice as likely to be diagnosed at a later stage. The later diagnosis meant that those children faced a higher risk of death from cancer compared to their peers with continuous Medicaid coverage and private insurance. 

Read the full report here.