News Release Archives

State Profiles Highlight Variations in How Many Low-Income Medicare Beneficiaries Get Additional Help with Their Medicare Costs

Apr 20, 2022

News Release

Medicare beneficiaries with low incomes and modest assets can qualify for additional financial help with Medicare premiums and cost sharing through both the Medicare Savings Programs and Medicare’s Part D Low-Income Subsidy for prescription drug coverage. A new analysis and collection of interactive profiles highlight variations across states in the number and characteristics of beneficiaries who receive this additional financial assistance, including race and ethnicity, gender, and age. These findings reflect differences between states such…

Ending COVID-19 Emergency Declarations Will Bring an End to Flexibilities that Aided Patients, Providers, Insurers, and Public Programs in Responding to the Pandemic

Apr 8, 2022

News Release

When the federal government ends COVID-19 emergency declarations that were declared in the early days of the pandemic, it will bring to a close several changes that were enacted temporarily to enable the U.S. health care system to better deal with the crisis. A new KFF resource details a number of those flexibilities and lays out what it will mean for people, providers and federal health programs when they go away. One of the key…

As the COVID-19 Pandemic Enters the Third Year Most Adults Say They Have Not Fully Returned to Pre-Pandemic ‘Normal’

Apr 6, 2022

News Release

People of Color, Lower Income Adults, and Those With Chronic Conditions Are More Vigilant About COVID-19 Precautions Like Masking, and Want Others to Continue Them as Well The Public Is Divided About Public Transportation Mask Requirement, With Half Wanting the Mandate Extended and the Other Half Wanting to Let it Expire Conventional wisdom may be that Americans are ready to put COVID-19 in the rearview mirror and cast precautions aside, but the latest KFF COVID-19…

Strategies To Lower Drug Costs Top the Public’s Health Priorities for Congress

Mar 31, 2022

News Release

Against the backdrop of public concern about inflation and rising gas prices, proposals to lower what people pay out-of-pocket for drugs tops the public’s list of health care priorities for Congress, a new KFF Health Tracking Poll finds. Most (55%) of the public say inflation is the biggest problem facing the country. Fewer cite other issues such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine (18%), climate change (6%), the COVID-19 pandemic (6%), and crime (6%). The…

Many Uninsured People Could Lose Access to Free COVID-19 Testing, Treatment, and Vaccines as Federal Funding Runs Out

Mar 28, 2022

News Release

With an impasse in Congress over additional COVID-19 emergency funding, uninsured people could lose access to free testing and treatment services, a new KFF brief explains. For people without health insurance, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) COVID-19 Uninsured Program has reimbursed hospitals, doctors and other providers for the COVID-19 care and services that they provide to uninsured people. However, with federal funds running out, the program is no longer accepting new claims for…

New KFF Analysis Finds That the U.S. Government Does Not Currently Have Enough Vaccine Doses to Fully Cover Every American with a 4th Dose

Mar 25, 2022

News Release

With funding for additional COVID-19 support at a stalemate in Congress, a new KFF analysis looks at potential scenarios that United States might face if a 4th COVID-19 vaccine dose is recommended to the public. The analysis finds that the U.S. government does not have enough funding to purchase vaccine doses remaining to fully cover the population under any of the predicted scenarios. If 4th doses are authorized and recommended for all ages, there will…

Many Privately Insured People with Diabetes Could Save Money if Congress Caps Insulin Costs

Mar 24, 2022

News Release

Several legislative proposals in Congress propose a $35 per month cap on what people with health insurance would have to pay out of pocket for insulin, a life-saving hormone taken regularly by many people with diabetes to maintain their health. Such a cap could provide financial relief to at least 1 out of 5 insulin users with different types of private health insurance, a new KFF analysis of insurance claims data finds. In the large…

Despite Efforts to Prevent Out-of-Pocket Costs for Rape Kits and Services by the Violence Against Women Act, Some Women Still Face Charges

Mar 18, 2022

News Release

In the United States, more than one in three women experience sexual violence in their lifetime. Despite the intent of Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) to protect survivors from out-of-pocket spending stemming from rape kit collection services also known as a medical forensic exam (MFE), many women face health care bills because they seek those critical services. A new KFF analysis of a sample of private insurance claims from large employers finds that two-thirds (66%)…

States Are Planning for the End of the Continuous Enrollment Requirement in Medicaid After the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Expires, But Many Have Not Made Key Decisions

Mar 16, 2022

News Release

As states plan for the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency, the resumption of eligibility redeterminations and disenrollments when the continuous Medicaid enrollment requirement is lifted could lead to coverage disruptions and losses, according to a new KFF 50-state survey. The requirement, a condition of states receiving enhanced federal Medicaid funding during the pandemic, has helped drive Medicaid and CHIP enrollment to a record 85 million people, an increase of 19.1 percent since the…

Telehealth Continues to Account for More Than a Third of Outpatient Visits for Mental Health and Substance Use Services Well into the COVID-19 Pandemic

Mar 15, 2022

News Release

A new analysis from KFF and Epic Research finds that telehealth visits for outpatient mental health and substance use services went from virtually zero percent in 2019 prior to the COVID-19 pandemic to a peak of 40% in mid-2020 – and continued to account for more than a third (36%) of such visits in the six months ending in August 2021. The telehealth boom for mental health and substance use services far exceeds the increase…

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