Fewer Illinoisans get health insurance at work

A new report says the percentage of Illinoisans who get health insurance through work has declined.

The report, released Thursday, finds the portion of non-elderly Illinois residents with insurance through their jobs dropped from 74 percent in 2000 to 62 percent in 2011.

It's a national trend. Overall, the report finds that 11.5 million fewer Americans received health insurance through an employer or a family member's job in 2011 than in 2000.

Fewer employers are offering insurance and fewer workers are accepting it, possibly because of rising costs.

In contrast, more young adults are covered through employer-sponsored insurance. The researchers attribute that to a provision of the Affordable Care Act, passed in 2010.

The report is from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the State Health Access Data Assistance Center.