Study: US' Rate Of Uninsured Kids Rose For The First Time Since 2008

The number of uninsured children in the U.S. went up in 2017 — the first time that's happened in almost a decade. 

That's according to a study released Thursday by the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University. The rate of uninsured children ticked up from 4.7 percent in 2016 to 5 percent in 2017, an estimated difference of 276,000 kids. 

The researchers put a lot of the blame on the Trump administration and Republican policies aimed at cutting Medicaid and Affordable Care Act enrollment. They say the overwhelming majority of kids who lost coverage lived in states that have not expanded Medicaid.

Also cited in the study is the Trump administration's proposed move to restrict legal immigrants' access to public benefits, which the authors say would likely lead to even more uninsured children if implemented.

Health care was a major talking point in the recent midterm elections, with one study finding close to 50 percent of ads in House and Senate races mentioned the issue.