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Latest from Kaiser Health News

Latest Polling on racial inequities

Latest Polling

50%

Half of the public (50%) recognize that Black Americans are more likely to get sick or die from coronavirus while fewer (36%) are aware of the disproportionate impact of coronavirus on Hispanics.

48%

About half of Black adults (48%), including 60% of Black men and 38% of Black women, say they have ever been afraid their life was in danger because of their race. This compares to about a quarter (26%) of Hispanic adults and 16% of White adults.

42%

Approximately 4 in 10 say that Black Americans are more likely to receive poor quality health care (42%), less likely to be covered by health insurance (45%), and less likely to be able to access the health care they need (44%).

63%

A majority of Black adults (63%) and nearly half (45%) of Hispanic adults say they have been treated unfairly in a variety of situations in the past 12 months because of their race or ethnicity.

june 2020 poll on RACISM, PROTESTS, AND RACIAL DISPARITIES

Drew Altman, CEO

Column
Drew Altman: The Pandemic is Boosting the Public’s View of Doctors

In this Axios column, Drew Altman looks at how the heroic performance of the nation’s doctors on the frontlines of coronavirus care and effective communication by many physician scientists on television, is shifting the public’s views, with twice as many Americans now saying doctors put people ahead of profits than they did in earlier KFF polling.
Column
Hotspot States See More COVID Cases in Nursing Homes

In his Axios column, Drew Altman discusses new data on the surge of new infections in long-term care facilities in COVID-19 hotspots. The dominant narrative about the Sunbelt surge in new cases is that the infected population is younger, but he says that’s not the whole story. There is also a spike in cases in long-term care facilities, especially in Florida and Texas.
Column
How Threatening The ACA Again Could Hurt Trump With Independent Voters

In his Axios column, Drew Altman shows how threatening the Affordable Care Act in the U.S. Supreme Court, or overturning it, could hurt President Trump with independent voters, and says that could matter most in battleground states.
Column
The Front-line Workers Most at Risk from Coronavirus

As state and local governments ease social distancing orders, many employers and workers face decisions about a physical return to the workplace. Drew Altman’s latest Axios column analyzes the numbers and finds that, “An estimated 25-30 million people are caught in the middle of the coronavirus economy — they’re unable to work from home but also face a high risk of severe infection.”

More Drew Altman

new & Noteworthy

Rising Cases in Long-term Care Facilities Are Cause for Concern
Media has largely focused on the share of cases attributed to a younger population. However, increased cases in long-term care facilities are cause for concern, given that nearly half of all COVID-19 deaths have been in long-term care facilities. Long-term care cases in Texas and Florida have increased by over 50% in two weeks.
Where are the COVID-19 Hotspots? Tracking State Outbreaks
This brief analyzes multiple COVID-19 metrics to determine which states the pandemic is moving in the wrong, or right, direction as an increasing number of cases could be the result of more testing or the result of increasing transmission, or a combination of both.
Coronavirus: Reopening, Schools, And The Government Response
This poll examines the public’s views on reopening society during the coronavirus pandemic, as well as parents’ worries when it comes to their children returning or not returning to school, the mental health and economic effects, and priorities for possible congressional action.
8 in 10 People Who Have Died of COVID-19 Were Age 65 or Older – But the Share Varies By State
This analysis examines the extent of state-level variation in the share of COVID-19 deaths accounted for by older adults, using data from the CDC as of July 22, 2020, for the week ending July 11, 2020.