What do you think is the MOST urgent health problem facing this nation TODAY?  Is there another health problem you think is almost as urgent?

Total exceeds 100% due to multiple responses

36

Cancer

16

AIDS or HIV

16

Health care – cost

14

Lack of good nutrition/junk foods/obesity/weight disorder

14

Heart disease

11

Health insurance/The uninsured

8

Diabetes

5

Health care – access

4

Smoking

4

Drugs

4

Bird Flu/Flu

3

Elderly

2

Pollution/environment/contamination

1

STDs (other than HIV)

1

Hunger/malnutrition

8

Other

9

Don’t know/Refused

Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Methodology: Fieldwork conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, October 4-9, 2005 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,200.

What do you think is the most urgent health problem facing this nation today? Is there another problem you think is almost as urgent?

Subpopulation/Note: Asked of half sample

Adds to more than 100% due to multiple responses

12% Health insurance/The uninsured10 Diabetes5 Health care-access4 Smoking3 Drugs2 Elderly2 Pollution/Environment2 STDs (Sexually Transmitted Diseases)1 Hunger/Malnutrition12 Other7 Don’t know/Refused16 Heart Disease35 Cancer21 AIDS or HIV17 Health care-cost16 Lack of good nutrition/Junk foods/Obesity

Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Methodology: Fieldwork conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates, March 15 and May 11, 2004 and based on telephone interviews with a national sample of 2,902 adults.

Now, thinking specifically about health…What do you think is the most urgent health problem facing this nation today? Is there another health problem you think is almost as urgent?

Subpopulation/Note: Asked of half sample

Adds to more than 100% due to multiple responses

27% Cancer19 Health care-cost18 Health insurance/The uninsured17 AIDS or HIV9 Health care-access8 Heart Disease7 Diabetes7 Senior citizens care6 Other specific disease5 Drugs5 Obesity3 Smoking/Cigarettes1 Hunger/Malnutrition1 STDs (Sexually Transmitted Diseases)16 Other9 Don’t know/Refused

Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Washington Post, Harvard University. Methodology: Fieldwork conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates , June 13-June 23, 2002 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult of 1,402. The sample included an oversample of 100 African Americans and 101 Latinos.

What do you think is the most urgent health problem facing this nation today? Is there another health problem you think is almost as urgent?

Subpopulation/Note: Asked of half sample

Adds to more than 100% due to multiple responses. 

35% Cancer26 AIDS11 Heart10 Health care-Cost9 Health insurance/The uninsured4 Diabetes4 Health care-access4 Elderly2 Smoking2 Drugs2 Obesity2 Alzheimer’s1 High blood pressure1 STDs (Sexually Transmitted Diseases)1 Malnutrition* Hunger13 Other9 Don’t know/Refused

Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Methodology: Fieldwork conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates, August 14-October 26, 2000 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 2,683.

What do you think is the most urgent health problem facing this nation today? Is there another health problem you think is almost as urgent?

Subpopulation/Note: Adds to more than 100% due to multiple responses

38% AIDS38 Cancer21 Health insurance/access/cost16 Heart5 Drugs3 Smoking/cigarettes2 Elderly2 Excess weight/obesity2 Diabetes14 Other8 Don’t know/Refused

Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Methodology: Fieldwork conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates, September 17-October 19, 1997 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,205.

What do you think is the most urgent health problem facing this nation today? Is there another health problem you think is almost as urgent?

Subpopulation/Note: Adds to more than 100% due to multiple responses.

44

AIDS or HIV

27

Cancer

27

Health care costs and health insurance/access

11

Heart

4

Drugs

4

Elderly

15

Other

8

Health care – access

8

Don’t know/Refused

Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Methodology: Fieldwork conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates, November 27-December 17, 1995 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult of 1,511. The survey of 1511 included an oversample of 250 African-Americans and 250 Hispanics. Results were weighted to be representative of a national adult population.

Who are the Uninsured? A Consistent Profile Across National Surveys

This issue brief examines the differences in the estimates of the uninsured population from three major surveys and finds that the estimates are actually more consistent than what is often perceived. In addition, the analysis shows that who the uninsured are does not vary much across national surveys.

Issue Brief

This report offers insights into Medicare beneficiaries’ experiences with the new drug benefit, based on observations of State Health Insurance Assistance Plan (SHIP) directors convened for a moderated focus group discussion. Because SHIP directors work closely with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and are on the front lines providing one-on-one counseling for beneficiaries who have questions or problems related to the new drug benefit, they are a key resource for understanding issues that have emerged during the first six months of the new Medicare benefit. At the same time, because SHIPs are a resource for people who need help and seek assistance, the issues identified in this report should not be construed to apply generally to the Medicare population.

SHIP directors who participated in the focus group reported significant casework related to data system errors resulting in beneficiaries being enrolled in a plan other than the one they had selected, being enrolled into multiple plans, or inadvertently disenrolled from a plan. Another major source of casework involved Part D premium payments, particularly for those who elected to have premiums deducted from their Social Security checks. Other issues include concerns about marketing practices by some Part D plans, prior authorization requirements, beneficiaries’ limited knowledge of Medicare Advantage products, emerging concerns related to the “doughnut hole,” and problems with the automatic enrollment of the dual eligible population.

Report

On the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s landfall, a paper authored by Foundation staff, released as a web exclusive by the journal Health Affairs, examines the impact of the storm on New Orleans, the current state of health care in the city, and lessons learned about the city’s health care delivery system.

Health Affairs article:

Full Article

Abstract

The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA), signed into law on February 8, 2006, contains a large number of changes in Medicaid policy that are expected to affect almost all elements of the Medicaid program—eligibility, benefits and cost-sharing, provider payments and program integrity. In most instances the policy changes are optional for state Medicaid programs, but in some the changes are mandatory. At the federal level, the interpretation and implementation of these legislative policy changes is primarily the responsibility of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). State Medicaid agencies and state legislatures look to CMS for guidance as to what policy changes they must make and what policy changes they are allowed to make.

This policy brief outlines the roles of Congress, CMS and the states in implementing Medicaid policy changes and highlights some of the changes included in the DRA. The brief also examines how the forms and timing of guidance can affect the transparency of the public policy process as well as lead time for state implementation of new policies.

Issue Brief (.pdf)