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  • Constrained Budgets Lead States to Restrict HIV Drug Access Through Ryan White

    Policy Watch

    States are facing constrained budgets, putting pressure on HIV programs, including the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program. This Policy Watch explores how state Ryan White AIDS Drug Assistance Programs (ADAPs) are responding to these budget pressures, including by restricting eligibility and reducing the scope of services offered, actions that could led to negative health outcomes for people with HIV and lead to new HIV infections.

  • What Newly Released Medicaid Data Do and Don’t Tell Us

    Policy Watch

    On February 14, 2026, CMS released a dataset with provider-level spending data that the agency suggests could be used to identify unusual billing patterns for specific services, states, or providers. This policy watch describes what the data include, what they exclude, and how they could potentially lead to mistaken conclusions given the limitations of the data.

  • A Closer Look at Nebraska, the First State Planning to Implement a Medicaid Work Requirement

    Policy Watch

    Nebraska is the first state to announce it plans to begin enforcing Medicaid work requirements early, starting May 1, 2026. Initial reports from the state during its recent January Medicaid Advisory Committee (MAC) meeting and data from KFF’s Medicaid work requirements tracker provide early insights into how Nebraska is preparing for implementation.

  • State Recommendations for Routine Childhood Vaccines: Increasing Departure from Federal Guidelines

    Policy Watch

    Starting in May of last year, HHS Secretary Kennedy and the CDC/ACIP began to make changes to the federal vaccine schedule for children, culminating in an announcement on January 5 of this year with the most wide-ranging changes to date. This policy brief tracks the number of states that have announced they are no longer following federal government recommendations for childhood vaccines as of January 20, 2026.

  • State-Based Efforts Will Provide Limited Relief from Enhanced Tax Credit Expiration

    Policy Watch

    After failed Senate votes late last year and no subsequent bipartisan agreement, the enhanced premium tax credits expired as of January 1. Some states, particularly those operating State-Based Marketplaces (SBMs), have been preparing for this possibility for months and are moving to blunt the impact on consumers by implementing their own state-funded subsidies and implementing other programs aimed at stabilizing the cost of unsubsidized premiums.