That’s fine. 8% is a lot and it’s worth worrying about, so long as one avoids slipping, as so often happens in this discussion, into characterizing a lack of health insurance as the typical American experience. It is not that.
The statistics you're citing aren't as strong as your claim ("not typical"). 8% of Americans have no insurance at all, ever, the entire year. But it's common for the working class and even much of the middle class to have a significant period lacking insurance during the course of their lives.
Yes, you're right, but I'd push back again by noting that those people will either find work and regain insurance or they'll ultimately be approved for Medicaid, if it comes to that. I was one such person. I was uninsured in 2003 when I was in a serious car accident and hospitalized for 18 days. What happened is that I was immediately approved for Medicaid and most of my bills -- totaling in the hundreds of thousands -- were covered.
