The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
This Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured video segment returns to the plaintiffs of the Olmstead case five years after the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision. It reports on the impact of the decision for individuals with disabilities and some of the challenges that remain in the implementation of the court ruling.
This chartbook provides California and U.S. data and trend analysis on a broad range of health system and financing indicators, including demographics and health status data, insurance coverage and the uninsured, employer health insurance premiums and offer rates, Medicaid and Medicare enrollment and spending, and health care industry trends.
Chartbook (.pdf)
Trends in Medicare Supplemental Insurance and Prescription Drug Benefits, 1996-2001 Data Update
This data update provides estimates of supplemental insurance and prescription drug coverage rates and trends between 1996 and 2001, which will help to provide important context for assessing future changes in supplemental insurance and drug coverage rates after provisions of the Medicare drug benefit take effect.
Report (.pdf)
The Global HIV Prevention Working Group issued the first major report to examine global HIV prevention needs in a time of expanding treatment access, “HIV Prevention in the Era of Expanded Treatment Access.” The Global HIV Prevention Working Group is a panel of nearly 50 leading public health experts, clinicians, biomedical, and behavioral researchers, and people affected by HIV/AIDS, convened by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Kaiser Family Foundation. This is the third report released by the Working Group.
News Release (.pdf)
Summary (.pdf)
Full Report: HIV Prevention in Era of Expanded Treatment Access (.pdf)
CALL FOR PAPERS: Health Policy Challenges Affecting American Indians and Alaska Natives
The American Journal of Public Health (AJPH), in collaboration with the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, is planning to publish a collection of papers on how the United States can more effectively meet the health care needs of American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIANs). The guest editors are soliciting contributions to the “Health Policy and Ethics” and “Research and Practice” sections of the AJPH. Research Articles (180 word structured abstract, 3500 word text, up to 4 tables/figures) and Analytic Essays (120 word unstructured abstract, 3500 word text, up to 4 tables/figures) for the department “Health Policy and Ethics” are encouraged that address the challenges or approaches to eliminating health care disparities (in access, quality, or financing of care) between AIANs and other population groups. All papers will undergo peer review by the AJPH editorial team, the guest editors, and a slate of referees, as per AJPH policy.
In order to be considered for inclusion in this series, papers must be submitted by September 1, 2004 through the online submission at http://submit.ajph.org. This website also provides Instructions for Authors, including specific guidelines for various types of papers. When submitting articles, please select “AIAN series” under the Theme Issue menu. Additional information concerning this series can be obtained by contacting AIAN_AJPHseries@kff.org
Marsha Lillie-Blanton, DrPH and Yvette Roubideaux, MD, MPH, Guest Editors
These survey findings of Americans’ views on HIV testing are part of Kaiser’s national “Survey of Americans on HIV/AIDS,” conducted in spring 2004. It explores such issues as how many adults report ever having been tested and talk to their doctor about HIV/AIDS, as well as misconceptions and stigma about HIV testing. The first part of the survey, on global HIV/AIDS, was released on June 2, 2004. The final portion of the survey will be released in August 2004.
Survey Toplines (.pdf)
These survey findings of Americans’ views on HIV testing are part of Kaiser’s national “Survey of Americans on HIV/AIDS,” conducted in spring 2004. It explores such issues as how many adults report ever having been tested and talk to their doctor about HIV/AIDS, as well as misconceptions and stigma about HIV testing. The first part of the survey, on global HIV/AIDS, was released on June 2, 2004. The final portion of the survey will be released in August 2004.
Summary and Chartpack (.pdf)
These survey findings of Americans’ views on HIV testing are part of Kaiser’s national “Survey of Americans on HIV/AIDS,” conducted in spring 2004. It explores such issues as how many adults report ever having been tested and talk to their doctor about HIV/AIDS, as well as misconceptions and stigma about HIV testing. The first part of the survey, on global HIV/AIDS, was released on June 2, 2004. The final portion of the survey will be released in August 2004.
Survey of Americans on HIV/AIDS – Part One: Global HIV/AIDS
Survey of Americans on HIV/AIDS – Part Three: Experiences and Opinions by Race/Ethnicity and Age
A Political History of Medicare and Prescription Drug Coverage
Thomas R. Oliver, Philip R. Lee, and Helene L. Lipton
This article examines the history of efforts to add prescription drug coverage to the Medicare program. It identifies several important patterns in policymaking over four decades. First, prescription drug coverage has usually been tied to the fate of broader proposals for Medicare reform. Second, action has been hampered by divided government, federal budget deficits, and ideological conflict between those seeking to expand the traditional Medicare program and those preferring a greater role for private health care companies. Third, the provisions of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 reflect earlier missed opportunities. Policymakers concluded from past episodes that participation in the new program should be voluntary, with Medicare beneficiaries and taxpayers sharing the costs. They ignored lessons from past episodes, however, about the need to match expanded benefits with adequate mechanisms for cost containment. Based on several new circumstances in 2003, the article demonstrates why there was a historic opportunity to add a Medicare prescription drug benefit and identifies challenges to implementing an effective policy.
A Political History of Medicare and Prescription Drug Coverage (.pdf)
Article courtesy of the Milbank Quarterly and the Milbank Memorial Foundation.
California Health Care Chartbook: Key Data and Trends
Section 7: The Changing Health Care Marketplace
The following exhibits can be found in the above PDF.HMOs and HospitalsExhibit 7.1aPercent of the Population in HMOs in California and the United States, July 2002Exhibit 7.1bHMO Penetration Rates for California Counties, March 2003Exhibit 7.1cStates with Highest and Lowest Shares of the Population in HMOs, July 2002Exhibit 7.1dEnrollment in the Five Largest HMOs in California, July 2002Exhibit 7.2aCommunity Hospital Beds Per 100,000 Population, California and the United States, 1985-2001Exhibit 7.2bDistribution of Community Hospitals by Ownership Type, California and the United States, 1989 and 2001Exhibit 7.2cCommunity Hospital Admissions and Emergency Room Visits Per 1,000 Population, California and the United States, 2001Exhibit 7.2dCommunity Hospital Adjusted Expenses Per Inpatient Day, California and the United States, 1999-2001Nursing Homes, Providers, and Prescription Drugs Exhibit 7.3aNumber of Residents, Facilities, Beds, and Occupancy Rates in Certified Nursing Facilities, California, 1995-2002Exhibit 7.3bNursing Facilities by Ownership Type and Payer Source, California and the United States, 2002Exhibit 7.4aNon-Federal Physicians Per 100,000 Civilian Population, California and the United States, 1975-2002Exhibit 7.4bMean Physician Net Income, California and the United States, 1994 and 2000Exhibit 7.4cMean Physician Net Income for Primary Care and Specialist Physicians, California and the United States, 1997 and 2000Exhibit 7.4dSources of Physician Practice Revenue, California and United States, 1999Exhibit 7.5Registered Nurses Per 10,000 Population, California and the United States, 1999-2001Exhibit 7.6Health Care Personnel, California and the United StatesExhibit 7.7Prescription Drug Use, Sales, and Prices, California and the United States, 2002