Fewer Ohio children lack health insurance than did four years ago, but the number of working-age adults without coverage is up, according to a new statewide survey.

The much-anticipated Ohio Family Health Survey being released today shows that 17 percent of adults ages 18 to 64 have no health insurance -- that's more than 1.2 million people and an increase of 2 percent from 2004, when the last report was issued. Franklin County's rate is slightly higher than the state average, with nearly 1 in 5 uninsured.

The spike comes as little surprise to state officials and others who say rising job losses -- and the loss of benefits that often come with employment -- are to blame.

"More people are not covered by their employers because they were laid off, and there is a downward trend of employers to offer coverage," said Doug Anderson, chief policy officer for the Ohio Department of Insurance.

Among children, 4 percent are uninsured, down from 5.4 percent in 2004, a decrease that state officials attribute to recent expansions of the tax-funded Children's Health Insurance Program, which provides coverage to youngsters in low-income families. In Franklin County, 4.5 percent of children are uninsured.

"Clearly through the bipartisan efforts in Ohio, we have made a significant step toward making sure every child has access to quality health care," said Amanda Wurst, spokeswoman for Gov. Ted Strickland.

The Family Health Survey is considered among the largest and most reliable gauges of Ohio's health status. More than 51,000 households were interviewed statewide. The survey is done every four years, and Ohio policymakers rely on the findings to guide policy.

"This report demonstrates the need to address the number of uninsured adults, and we must act quickly to expand access to more affordable health care for adult Ohioans," Wurst said.

Release of the survey comes just weeks after President Barack Obama launched efforts to reform the nation's health care and as state lawmakers consider proposals by Strickland aimed at expanding access to more affordable coverage to Ohio adults.

The governor's plan includes: a cap on how much insurance companies can charge people with chronic conditions for health care; a requirement that insurers extend dependent coverage to children up to age 29; and a requirement that employers allow uninsured workers to buy health care with pre-tax dollars.

Ohio also will expand its Children's Health Insurance Program beginning July 1 to children in families earning up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level; that's $63,600 a year for a family of four. The program currently caps eligibility at 200 percent of poverty.

While the program is widely considered a success, the survey showed that of the 111,255 uninsured children in Ohio, 77,023 are in families with incomes below 200 percent of poverty, suggesting that they are eligible for SCHIP but not enrolled. The report also found that Hispanic children were more than three times more likely to be uninsured than white children.

Amy Swanson, executive director of Voices for Ohio Children, said her organization and others are increasing efforts to enroll more children in the program and are pushing to simplify the enrollment and renewal process. Many children, she said, drop from the program after a year when their parents must resubmit documentation verifying their incomes.

"We can finish the job for Ohio's kids," she said. "The Ohio Family Health Survey is proof positive that we can be successful in reaching our goal to cover all children."

Ohio Medicaid Director John Corlett said the children's health program is probably one of the most successful public-policy initiatives in recent years.

"The decline in the children's uninsured rate -- nationally and in Ohio -- is due to what we've done with SCHIP. It's astonishing in light of everything else going on around us in the economy."

Reducing the number of adults without health care will be a more complicated and costly endeavor than for children, who generally require cheaper preventive care.

"It will take a similar effort to decrease the number of uninsured adults," Corlett said. "States can't do it on their own, but the success of the children's program shows it can be done. You have to bring costs down and expand opportunities for coverage."

The survey found that 30 percent of adults ages 18 to 24 are uninsured, the highest percentage among working-age adults. Uninsured rates also are higher among those with lower education levels. A third of uninsured adults do not have high-school diplomas compared with 6.5 percent of college graduates.

As for race, 39 percent of Hispanics are uninsured compared with 12 percent of Asians.

The Family Health Survey was conducted by Macro International between August and January and overseen by Ohio State University's Colleges of Medicine Government Resource Center and the Health Policy Institute of Ohio. It was funded by the Ohio departments of Insurance, Job and Family Services, Health and Mental Health, the Ohio Board of Regents and Cleveland State University.

ccandisky@dispatch.com