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From Drew Altman

Drew Altman is president and chief executive officer of KFF, a position he has held for more than 30 years since founding the modern-day KFF organization in the 1990s. He is a leading expert on national health policy issues and an innovator in health journalism and the nonprofit field.

View full bio | Read Dr. Altman's Beyond the Data columns

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President’s Message

“KFF is an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. We have three major program areas: KFF Policy; KFF Polling; and KFF Health News (formerly Kaiser Health News), which conducts specialized public health information campaigns. Learn more about the organization. 

What’s unique about KFF, however, can’t be found in any description of our programs because we’re more than a sum of our parts. KFF is a one-of-a-kind information organization. Not a policy research organization. Not a polling organization. And not a news organization. But rather, a unique combination of all three. That’s the vision behind KFF, and it's this combination that allows us to leverage our combined expertise and assets to play our national role on health policy.” Read more

Beyond the Data

In his “Beyond the Data” columns, Drew Altman discusses what the data, polls, and journalism produced by KFF mean for policy and for people.

Americans May Be Smarter About Vaccines Than You Think

In a new column that analyzes recent KFF polling, Founding President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman concludes that only a sliver of the public hold definitive anti-science, anti-vaccine views, and are greatly outnumbered by the people who believe established science, with even more Americans stuck in a “muddled middle.” He writes, “when you see reports of social media engagement spiking about a health myth, don’t overreact. It’s more likely than not that it’s a relatively small group of Americans who already believe it talking to themselves, and they are vastly outnumbered by those who believe the science.”

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  • The Front-line Workers Most at Risk from Coronavirus

    From Drew Altman

    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.”

  • The Front-line Workers Most at Risk from Coronavirus

    From Drew Altman

    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.”

  • Coronavirus’ Unequal Economic Toll

    From Drew Altman

    In this column by Drew Altman in Axios, he finds almost half of African Americans and Latinos are struggling to pay their bills because of coronavirus. "This pain would surely be worse without Washington’s relief efforts. Even so, the hardship is real, and that strengthens the case for more aid and better targeting to the families that need it most.”

  • Big Questions for the Health Policy Community Emerging From the Coronavirus Crisis

    From Drew Altman

    With so many Americans dying, and so many more suffering severe economic hardship, it’s hard to look over the horizon at the larger questions the COVID-19 crisis will bring. The current emergency requires everyone’s attention 24/7. But an emerging set of questions will fall right in the bailiwick of the health policy community. In the shorter term: How many people will lose insurance in the economic crisis? Who are they? How many will gain it back?…

  • Reopening is a Risk for Republican Governors

    From Drew Altman

    In an Axios column, Drew Altman analyzes recent data on COVID-19 cases and deaths and finds “The hardest-hit areas so far have mostly been in states with Democratic governors. But the number of coronavirus cases is now increasing more quickly in states with Republican governors.”

  • Most Americans are Practicing Social Distancing

    From Drew Altman

    Drew Altman analyzes data showing surprising numbers of Americans of all ages are sheltering in place and reporting social distancing, and discusses the implications in an Axios column.

  • Most Americans are Practicing Social Distancing

    From Drew Altman

    Drew Altman analyzes data showing surprising numbers of Americans of all ages are sheltering in place and reporting social distancing, and discusses the implications in an Axios column.

  • The Public Wants the Federal Government, Not States, in Charge On Coronavirus

    From Drew Altman

    Drew Altman’s column today analyzes new polling showing that rather than serving as backup to the states, the public wants the federal government to lead the nation’s coronavirus response. He writes, “The public seems to believe that in a health crisis of this magnitude, with a virus that doesn’t stop at state or international borders and the death toll mounting, a more uniform and aggressive national response is needed.”