2001 Retiree Health and Prescription Drug Coverage Survey

This survey, released by the Kaiser Family Foundation, The Commonwealth Fund, and HRET, profiles retiree health coverage for Medicare-age (65+) retirees, including the amount retirees pay for coverage compared to active workers, cost-sharing for prescription drugs, and eligibility requirements for retiree benefits. The survey is based on the annual KFF/HRET Employer Health Benefits Survey

• News Release: New Survey Shows Retiree Health Benefits Continue to Decline
• Chart Pack

With attention focused recently on direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs, findings from a new National Survey of Physicians by the Kaiser Family Foundation shed light on another factor in drug promotion that has received less attention — promotion to physicians. Most physicians say they have received perks from a drug company representative, including free drug samples, meals, tickets to events, free travel and other incentives. When asked their views on information they receive from drug company representatives, nearly three-fourths say it is very or somewhat useful, and more than eight in ten say the information is very or somewhat accurate. Survey findings also show that physicians see several factors influencing patients awareness of drugs. More than six in 10 doctors say prescription drug advertisements influence patients to talk to their physicians at least somewhat often , and even more doctors say the general news media and friends and family members are frequent influences.

• Highlights and Chartpack

This survey snapshot is part of the new KFF/MTV Fight for Your Rights: Protect Yourself (FFYR), MTV’s campaign to inform and empower young people on the issues surrounding their sexual health, including HIV and AIDS, other sexually transmitted disease (STDs) and teen pregnancy. The new initiative includes special programming, public service messages, online and grassroots components, and an extensive resource and referral service.

• Survey Snapshot: The Sexual Health of Adolescents and Young Adults

Health News Index March/April, 2002

The March/April edition of the Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard School of Public Health Health News Index includes questions about major health stories covered in the news, including the recent coverage of mammogram efficacy, the Institute of Medicine report on racial disparities in the health care system, and prescription drug discount cards. The Health News Index is designed to help news media and people in the health field gain a better understanding of which health stories Americans are following and what they understand about those issues.

• HNI March-April 2002
• Topline/Survey

Survey highlights/chartpack from a new survey that finds that two-thirds of small employers say that they are dissatisfied with the cost of health care and health insurance, and about one-third of small businesses that now offer insurance say they are likely to increase the share of costs borne by employees in the next year.

• Survey Highlights and Chart Pack

National Survey of Small Businesses

Toplines from a new survey that finds that two-thirds of small employers say that they are dissatisfied with the cost of health care and health insurance, and about one-third of small businesses that now offer insurance say they are likely to increase the share of costs borne by employees in the next year.

• Toplines/Survey

A survey finds that two-thirds of small employers say that they are dissatisfied with the cost of health care and health insurance, and about one-third of small businesses that now offer insurance say they are likely to increase the share of costs borne by employees in the next year.

• Survey Highlights and Chart Pack
• Toplines/Survey

This issue brief examines the federal, state, and local policies that guide approaches to sex education today. It also examines recent research into community-level experiences and practices, as well as emerging evidence about the effectiveness of different types of sex education curricula.

• Issue Update:

The Commission initiated an examination of five states’ Medicaid programs and their overall fiscal situation in mid-2001. Below are the five state case studies.

• Medicaid and State Budgets: A Case Study of Idaho
• Medicaid and State Budgets: A Case Study of North Carolina
• Medicaid and State Budgets: A Case Study of Missouri
• Medicaid and State Budgets: A Case Study of Indiana
• Medicaid and State Budgets: A Case Study of Texas
• Click here to read an overview of the studies.

Solvency or Affordability? Ways to Measure Medicare’s Financial Health

This report examines different ways of measuring Medicare s financial health and considers their implications for the future of the program and the people it serves. Using an alternative measure of Medicare’s long-term affordability that focuses on workers’ capacity to absorb additional costs over time, the analysis concludes that the nation could afford to pay more for Medicare in the future without imposing an undue burden on working Americans.

• Report