[jeffrey]

Amid soaring health insurance costs, more entrepreneurs are gambling on the once unthinkable: living without insurance.

About 27% of self-employed workers did not have health insurance in 2002, up from 24.6% in 2001, according to new data from the Kaiser Family Foundation. Figures for 2003, expected this week, will likely show another jump, Kaiser says. Overall, 18.1% of all workers lack insurance.

"The situation is getting worse," says Kristie Darien, a lobbyist for the 250,000-member National Association for the Self-Employed.

The trend hits a big slice of U.S. workers: One of 13 is self-employed, a figure that rose after the recession. Insurance costs about $3,700 a year per person for the smallest employers — often more for self-employed workers who cannot get group rates... [read more at usatoday.com]