The number of Americans with health insurance is on the rise, according to a study released by the U.S. Census Bureau. The study, which contains data obtained during the year 2007, indicates a small increase in those Americans who have health insurance coverage.

In some instances, that coverage is provided by employers, while other Americans must obtain their own insurance plan. No matter the source, the study provides data which suggests that most minority groups, who are often seen as underserved by health insurance plans, are receiving insurance in greater numbers than they did in 2006.

According to the study, 45.7 million Americans were without health insurance in 2007. That is down from an uninsured rate of 47 million in 2006. The increase is small, but promising in a country where health care reform has recently taken center stage.

The number of uninsured Hispanics in America decreased to 14.8 million, down from 15.3 million a year earlier while the number of uninsured blacks remained relatively unchanged at 7.4 million. While there was good news for whites, whose uninsured numbers dropped to 20.5 million, the outlook was not so positive for Asians, who were the only demographic to actually show a rise in the number of uninsured citizens. The uninsured rate for Asians in 2006 was 15.5 percent, while that number increased to 16.8 percent in 2007.

The Census Bureau’s study also looked at the number of children in the United States who are without health insurance. Researchers found an overall decline in the number of uninsured children with 8.1 million in 2007, down from 8.7 million in 2006.

More Americans may be receiving individual Health Insurance, but a survey conducted by J.D. Power and Associates suggests that not all of those who have insurance are actually happy with their coverage.

Among those surveyed, more respondents working for large or even so-called “jumbo” employers who have greater than 5,000 employees were most satisfied with their health insurance. These workers said they were more likely to re-enroll in their insurance plan, and encourage others to do so.

People working for small employers, or the self-employed, were far more likely to express dissatisfaction with their health insurance. National insurance plans were among the least satisfactory in the survey, which found that these large insurance companies have difficulty providing uniform service in all regions of the United States.

The number one source of frustration among all respondents regardless of employer size was lack of communication with their insurance provider, particularly conflicting information from their original health insurance quotes. This lack of communication lead to misunderstandings about the scope and cost of coverage, and fully one-third of the respondents in the survey said they did not fully understand their coverage.

Jim Dougherty, executive director of healthcare practice at J.D. Power and Associates commented that “improving member communications can go a long way in driving higher levels of overall member satisfaction.”

While the results of the survey declared that health insurers could do better, they also cited some positive findings. Respondents with Health Maintenance Organization, or HMO, plans were slightly more satisfied with their type of coverage than were respondents with Preferred Provider Organization (PPO), or Point of Service (PPO) plans. Also, respondents reacted positively when asked about their choice of providers, suggesting that people like the flexibility of choosing their own doctor.