Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX

Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)

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2023 Population
7.27M
1.85% 1-year growth
US Senator
John Cornyn
Republican Party
US Senator
Ted Cruz
Republican Party
2023 Median Age
35.3
0.857% 1-year increase
2023 Poverty Rate
13.6%
1.17% 1-year increase
2023 Median Household Income
$80,458
3.07% 1-year growth
2023 Median Property Value
$275,200
8.52% 1-year growth
2023 Employed Population
3.49M
1.92% 1-year growth

About

In 2023, Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX had a population of 7.27M people with a median age of 35.3 and a median household income of $80,458. Between 2022 and 2023 the population of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX grew from 7.14M to 7.27M, a 1.85% increase and its median household income grew from $78,061 to $80,458, a 3.07% increase.

The 5 largest ethnic groups in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are White (Non-Hispanic) (33.8%), Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) (17%), Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) (14.1%), White (Hispanic) (11.6%), and Other (Hispanic) (10.3%).

None of the households in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

86.6% of the residents in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are Lone Star College System (11,382 degrees awarded in 2023), University of Houston (11,167 degrees), and San Jacinto Community College (7,726 degrees).

In 2023, the median property value in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX was $275,200, and the homeownership rate was 61.2%.

Most people in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 29.9 minutes. The average car ownership in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX was 2 cars per household.

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX borders Bay City, TX, Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX, Brenham, TX, El Campo, TX, and Huntsville, TX.

Photo by Thomas Hawk
United StatesTexas

Population & Diversity

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX is home to a population of 7.27M people, from which 86.6% are citizens. As of 2023, 23.7% of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX residents were born outside of the country (1.72M people).

In 2023, there were 1.99 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (2.46M people) in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX than any other race or ethnicity. There were 1.23M Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) and 1.02M Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

86.6%
2023 Citizenship
86.4%
2022 Citizenship

As of 2023, 86.6% of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX residents were US citizens, which is lower than the national average of 93.4%. In 2022, the percentage of US citizens in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX was 86.4%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been increasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

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Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX
  1. White (Non-Hispanic)
    2.46M ± 3.68k
  2. Black or African American (Non-Hispanic)
    1.23M ± 6.01k
  3. Two Races Including Other (Hispanic)
    1.02M ± 15.1k
37.8%
Hispanic Population
2.75M people

In 2023, there were 1.99 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (2.46M people) in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX than any other race or ethnicity. There were 1.23M Black or African American (Non-Hispanic) and 1.02M Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

37.8% of the people in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are hispanic (2.75M people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX as a share of the total population.

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Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the MSA level, so we are showing data for Texas.
Most Common Origin
  1. Mexico
    2,397,739 ± 36,447 people
  2. India
    325,248 ± 13,925 people
  3. El Salvador
    221,729 ± 11,517 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of Texas was Mexico, the natal country of 2,397,739 Texas residents, followed by India with 325,248 and El Salvador with 221,729.

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Foreign-Born Population

23.7%
2023 Foreign-Born Population
1.72M people
23.5%
2022 Foreign-Born Population
1.68M people

As of 2023, 23.7% of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX residents (1.72M people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 13.8%. In 2022, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX was 23.5%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

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Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period
  1. Gulf War (2001-)
    81,826 ± 3,333
  2. Vietnam
    73,243 ± 2,058
  3. Gulf War (1990s)
    47,321 ± 1,963

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX has a large population of military personnel who served in Gulf War (2001-), 1.12 times greater than any other conflict.

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Economy

The economy of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX employs 3.49M people. In 2023, the largest industries in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX were Health Care & Social Assistance (403,188 people), Retail Trade (365,879 people), and Construction (339,980 people), and the highest paying industries were Management of Companies & Enterprises ($125,466), Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($121,574), and Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($113,843).

Employment

Occupations

3.49M
2023 Value
± 19,969
1.92%
1 Year growth
± 0.81%

From 2022 to 2023, employment in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX grew at a rate of 1.92%, from 3.42M employees to 3.49M employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, are Management Occupations (394,127 people), Office & Administrative Support Occupations (353,794 people), and Sales & Related Occupations (344,671 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX.

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Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Texas.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in Texas (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

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Industries

Employment by Industries

3.49M
2023 Value
± 19,969
1.92%
1 Year growth
± 0.81%

From 2022 to 2023, employment in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX grew at a rate of 1.92%, from 3.42M employees to 3.49M employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, are Health Care & Social Assistance (403,188 people), Retail Trade (365,879 people), and Construction (339,980 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, though some of these residents may live in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

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Median Earnings by Industry

$55,901
Median earning men ± $530
$40,402
Median earning women ± $334

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2023 are Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($121,342), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($78,991), and Information ($77,595).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2023 are Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining ($90,591), Manufacturing ($56,415), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($55,061).

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Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Texas.
Y-Axis
4.59%
Year-over-year growth
Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 13.8M people employed in Texas. This represents a 4.59% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 9.63%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in Texas.

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Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments
  1. 15,650
    Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
  2. 9,797
    Retail Trade
  3. 9,457
    Health Care and Social Assistance

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

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Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll
  1. $24M
    Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
  2. $23.3M
    Health Care and Social Assistance
  3. $22.5M
    Management of Companies and Enterprises

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

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Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Texas went to Donald J. Trump with 56.1% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (42.5%), followed by Jill Stein (0.726%).

John Cornyn and Ted Cruz are the senators currently representing the state of Texas. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

Texas is currently represented by 38 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Voting results are not available for Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX. Showing the available data for Texas.
2024 Election Results
  1. Donald J. Trump (56.1%)
    Republican Party
  2. Kamala Harris (42.5%)
    Democratic Party
  3. Jill Stein (0.726%)
    Green Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in Texas went to Donald J. Trump with 56.1% of the vote. The runner-up was Kamala Harris (42.5%), followed by Jill Stein (0.726%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in Texas for each registered party from 1976 to 2024.

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Senator Elections

US Senators from Texas

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for Texas.
John Cornyn
Senator from Texas2
Assumed office on December 2, 2002
Phil Gramm resigned (effective November 30, 2002) a few weeks before the expiration of his term in hopes that his successor, fellow Republican John Cornyn, could gain seniority over other newly elected senators. However, Cornyn did not gain additional seniority due to a 1980 Rules Committee policy.
Ted Cruz
Senator from Texas1
Assumed office on January 3, 2013

John Cornyn and Ted Cruz are the senators currently representing Texas.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in Texas over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

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US Representative Elections

US Representatives from Texas

Texas is currently represented by 38 members in the U.S. house.

Members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms, and the following chart shows the how the members for Texas have changed over time starting in 2008.

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Education

In 2023, universities in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX awarded 72,654 degrees. The student population of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 130,605 male students and 183,605 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are Hispanic or Latino (27,342 and 40.2%), followed by White (16,704 and 24.5%), Black or African American (13,226 and 19.4%), and Asian (6,903 and 10.1%).

The largest universities in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX by number of degrees awarded are Lone Star College System (11,382 and 15.7%), University of Houston (11,167 and 15.4%), and San Jacinto Community College (7,726 and 10.6%).

The most popular majors in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are Liberal Arts & Sciences (6,224 and 8.57%), General Business Administration & Management (5,097 and 7.02%), and General Studies (4,199 and 5.78%).

The median tuition costs in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX are $22,568 for private four year colleges, and $5,812 and $17,359 respectively, for public four year colleges for in-state students and out-of-state students.

Admissions & Enrollments

Applicants, Admissions & Enrolled

University
Measure

In 2023 in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, the percentage of applicants admitted was 55.9%, while the percentage of admitted who enrolled was 25.4%. The number of students enrolled in 2023 was 314,210 (41.6% men and 58.4% women).

The line chart  shows the evolution of the percentage of applicants admitted, admitted who enrolled or the number of students enrolled according to the option selected in the upper button.

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Enrollments by Gender and Races

Universities

In 2023 there were 314,210 students enrolled in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, 41.6% men and 58.4% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in Hispanic or Latino with 122,285 records, of which 59.4% were women and 40.6% men.

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Completions

Concentrations

Most Common
  1. General Business Administration & Management
    1,361 degrees awarded
  2. Liberal Arts & Sciences
    6,161 degrees awarded
  3. General Studies
    4,085 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Associates Degree recipients in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX was General Business Administration & Management with 1,361 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Associates Degree from schools in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX according to their major.

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Universities

Gender
Race
Largest Universities by degrees awarded
  1. Lone Star College System
    11,382 degrees awarded
  2. University of Houston
    11,167 degrees awarded
  3. San Jacinto Community College
    7,726 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Lone Star College System with 11,382 degrees awarded.

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Student Diversity

University

In 2023, 30,495 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, which is 0.723 times less than the 42,159 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was Hispanic or Latino students. These 27,342 degrees mean that there were 1.64 times more degrees awarded to Hispanic or Latino students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, White, with 16,704 degrees awarded.

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Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

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Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Universities

Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above ($22,568) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Public, 4-year or above ($1,517) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Private for-profit, 2-year ($1,700) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

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Working Population

Educational Pyramid

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Texas.
Measure

In 2023, 1.71% of men over 25 years of age had not completed any academic degree (no schooling), while 1.64% of women were in the same situation.

This visualization shows the gender distribution of the population according to the academic level reached.

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Educational Attainment

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Texas.
Race

The most common educational levels obtained by the working population in 2023 were High School or Equivalent (5.75M), Some college (4.93M), and Bachelors Degree (4.37M).

This visualization illustrates the percentage distribution of the population according to the highest educational level reached. You can filter the data by race by using the selector above.

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Housing & Living

The median property value in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX was $275,200 in 2023, which is 0.907 times smaller than the national average of $303,400. Between 2022 and 2023 the median property value increased from $253,600 to $275,200, a 8.52% increase. The homeownership rate in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX is 61.2%, which is lower than the national average of 65%.

People in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX have an average commute time of 29.9 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$275,200
Median Property Value 2023
±$1,283
$1.59M
Median Property Taxes
±$12,126

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

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Rent vs Own

61.2%
Homeownership
2023
65.7%
Homeowners with Mortgage
2023

In 2023, 61.2% of the housing units in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 61.1%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

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Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.
$80,458
Median Household Income
± $526
2.6M
Number of Households
± 17,047

In 2023, the median household income of the 2.6M households in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX grew to $80,458 from the previous year's value of $78,061.

The following chart displays the households in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the $200k+ range.

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Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX is from Texas.
0.475
2023 Wage GINI in Texas
0.476
2022 Wage GINI in Texas

In 2023, the income inequality in Texas was 0.475 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.208% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for Texas was lower than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly in Texas in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in Texas across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

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Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2023
  1. Drove Alone (73.5%)
  2. Worked At Home (11.9%)
  3. Carpooled (9.71%)

In 2023, 73.5% of workers in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (11.9%) and those who carpooled to work (9.71%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

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Commute Time

29.9 minutes
Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX have a longer commute time (29.9 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.6 minutes). Additionally, 2.46% of the workforce in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

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Car Ownership

2 cars
Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX have 2 cars.

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Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

13.6% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX (976k out of 7.18M people) live below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.4%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 25 - 34, followed by Females 35 - 44 and then Males 6 - 11.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX is Hispanic, followed by White and Black.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

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Health

81.3% of the population of Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX has health coverage, with 46.7% on employee plans, 14% on Medicaid, 8.89% on Medicare, 10.7% on non-group plans, and 1.08% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Texas see 1,657 patients per year on average, which represents a 0.975% increase from the previous year (1,641 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1590 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 638 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.5% were men and 50.5% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for Texas.
1,657 to 1
Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Texas

Primary care physicians in Texas see an average of 1,657 patients per year. This represents a 0.975% increase from the previous year (1,641 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Texas in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

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Health Care Diversity

In 2023, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 27.6% under 18 years, 22.1% between 18 and 34 years, 38.4% between 35 and 64 years, and 12% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.5% were men and 50.5% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

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Uninsured People

18.7%
Uninsured
46.7%
Employer Coverage
14%
Medicaid
8.89%
Medicare
10.7%
Non-Group
1.08%
Military or VA

Between 2022 and 2023, the percent of uninsured citizens in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX declined by 0.0362% from 18.7% to 18.7%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

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