The number of Oklahomans without health care remains in the top 10 when compared to other states, according to statistics released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.

About 18.4 percent of Oklahoma residents went without insurance last year. The national average for the same year was 15.5 percent.

The Census Bureau noted that the poor are more likely to go without any kind of insurance, including private, work-related or government subsidized health care plans. Other demographics showing this trend are Hispanics, non-citizens, the unemployed and college-age persons.

Michael Givel, associate professor of political science and an expert in health policy, said the government-based insurance plans — Medicaid for the poor and Medicare for the elderly — do not apply to everyone.

“The uninsured in America are people who are generally not poor and generally not seniors, but are unemployed, self-employed or between jobs, or working for an employer who does not supply it to their workers,” Givel said.

He said young people tend to work in the service industry for minimum wage, and their jobs may not offer insurance.

OU offers health car, for a fee, that could be considered “comprehensive coverage.” According to the Census Bureau, students who receive university health services are usually considered insured.

Tim Buckman, business sophomore, is not one of the 18.4 percent uninsured. He is covered through his parents’ plan. When that runs out in a few years, he expects to be covered by his employer’s plan. But now, he’s happy to have the insurance.

“Definitely. It’s kind of a nice reminder that I do have it,” Buckman said.

Givel said the uninsured population can put others’ health, and pocketbook, at risk. There is the probability of communicable disease spreading to those who cannot afford health insurance. When a patient cannot afford to pay the hospital bills, that cost gets passed on to the rest, he said.

“While we spend a lot on health care, and we don’t cover everybody, we also spend one of the highest per capita for private care in the industrial world,” Givel said. “Not only is the system not providing access, but there is a question of whether it can be more efficient.”

He said the nation faces a moral question:

“Is human life more valuable than just the economy, and whether you can pay for it or not? Is it a right?” he said.