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Compared to most similarly large and wealthy countries, the U.S. has fewer practicing physicians per capita but has a similar number of licensed nurses per capita. Looking specifically at the hospital setting, the U.S. has more hospital-based employees per capita than most other comparable countries, but nearly half of these hospital workers are non-clinical staff.
A new analysis and chart collection finds that the U.S. has fewer hospital beds and practicing physicians per capita than many similarly large and wealthy countries with health care systems already strained by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Compared to Italy and Spain, two countries in which hospitals have already been overwhelmed by an influx of COVID-19 patients, the U.S. has fewer practicing physicians per capita - 2.6 per 1,000 people, compared to 4.0 in Italy…
As COVID-19 spreads within the United States, questions have arisen over the potential costs people may face if they become severely ill and need treatment. While many large insurers have agreed to waive copayments and deductibles for COVID-19 tests, people with private insurance who face deductibles could still be on the hook for large treatment costs. A new brief examines the potential cost of COVID-19 treatment to employer health plans and their enrollees by looking…
A new issue brief estimates potential coronavirus treatment costs to large employer health plans and their enrollees by looking at typical spending for hospital admissions for pneumonia. The analysis finds that, for pneumonia admissions with major complications and comorbidities, the average total cost is $20,292. In comparison, the average cost for a patient with no complications or comorbidities is $9,763. Average out-of-pocket costs could exceed $1,300 for all admitted patients, including those without complications or…
Based on current understanding of risk, forty-one percent of adults ages 18 and older in the U.S. have a higher risk of developing more serious illness if they become infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, because they are older or have serious underlying health conditions, or both, according to a new KFF analysis. Of the more than 105 million adults at higher risk if infected with coronavirus, most – 76.3 million, or 72 percent…
Many uninsured people do not obtain the treatments their health care providers recommend for them because of the cost of care. In 2018, uninsured nonelderly adults were more than three times as likely as adults with private coverage to say that they postponed or did not get a needed prescription drug due to cost.
A collection of key health policy resources for journalists covering the Democratic presidential primary debates.
A new issue brief looks at the prevalence of potential surprise medical bills based on patient diagnosis, emergency visits, and type of inpatient admission.
Ahead of the annual Affordable Care Act (ACA) open enrollment period, the time during which consumers can shop for health plans or renew existing coverage, KFF has updated and expanded its searchable collection of more than 300 Frequently Asked Questions about open enrollment, the health insurance marketplaces and the ACA. Designed to help consumers and the navigators, brokers and others who assist them, the FAQs cover a wide range of topics including eligibility for subsidies,…
The first comprehensive summary of donor funding for the response to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo estimates that at least $546 million was provided by donors from August 2018, when the outbreak started, through September 2019.
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