Democrats tout new report on uninsured to blast repeal efforts

Democrats say a new report showing that 59.1 million Americans went without health insurance for at least part of the first three months of 2010 — a 400,000 increase over last year's count from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — proves that healthcare reform was necessary.

"While GOP leaders are fighting to protect insurance companies," the Senate Democratic Communications Center argues, "the Democrats will continue to fight to protect American families who deserve quality health care."

The new numbers, released Tuesday, are slightly higher than those of the Census Bureau, which reported in September that a record 50.7 million Americans were uninsured last year.

The CDC said that while more people went without insurance because of the tough economy, the rate of uninsured children under the age of 17 continues to drop thanks to reauthorization of the Children's Health Insurance Program.