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Beyond the Data: A Column by Dr. Drew Altman

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.

“KFF is a policy research organization, a polling and survey research organization, and a news organization, all in one. Those are our three main operating programs or divisions. The theory of the organization is to focus the policy research, the polling and the journalism on the same mission and the same issues at the same time, to give us the presence, reach and punch to play our role as an independent voice and source of information on national health issues. We’re a one-of-a-kind combination of all three — a different kind of information organization.” — Drew Altman, KFF President and CEO

Making KFF Less Mysterious Again

In one of his occasional columns about “us,” President and CEO, Dr. Drew Altman, addresses how KFF, which combines policy research, polling and journalism in one organization, operates and why we’re called KFF today, addressing occasional confusion about our name, how we work and how to describe KFF.

About KFF

A Few Thoughts After Twenty-Five Years Half In and Half Out of Journalism

Dr. Altman dissects a few key challenges facing journalism, observed over decades overseeing KFF’s health journalism and media programs, including launching KFF Health News as its Founding Publisher in 2009.  He discusses the need for more coverage of state health policy decisions, how news can play a role in countering and not spreading misinformation, and the pros and cons of journalism awards, among others.

Tax and Spending Law

What to Make of the $50 Billion Rural Hospital Grants Program

Dr. Altman examines the controversial rural hospital grant program, noting “Will the new $50 billion rural hospital grant program in the big Republican tax and spending law just amount to a bunch of ribbon cutting and big check ceremonies, or will it help rural hospitals offset coming Medicaid cuts, help them in general, or all of the above?”

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  • The Semi-Sad Prospects for Controlling Employer Health Care Costs

    From Drew Altman

    In a commentary on KFF’s 27th employer health benefits survey, President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman discusses the obstacles employers face trying to control their health care costs, and the reasons why they’ve never been meaningful supporters of government cost-containment efforts. He predicts that premium increases expected next year could lead to a new wave of higher deductibles and other forms of cost sharing for the 155 million Americans who rely on employer coverage. Read the column here.

  • The Mystery of How Many People Are on Medicaid

    From Drew Altman

    In a new column, Dr. Drew Altman, KFF's President and CEO, examines the different counts of the number of people on Medicaid that are currently in use, which range from 69 to 83 million, and why it might matter. He also discusses other ways to assess the reach of the program: “possibly it’s useful to explain why there are different numbers out there about what seemingly is an all-time simple question: how many people are on Medicaid,” Altman says.

  • The Spotlight Is on Medicaid Cuts, But the ACA Marketplaces Could See a One-Third Cut in Enrollment

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, President and CEO Drew Altman shows how proposals contained in the House reconciliation bill could result in a one-third reduction in ACA Marketplace enrollment. “While all eyes are on the big Medicaid cuts being proposed in the House,” he writes, “significant changes are also being proposed that together would dramatically reduce enrollment in the ACA Marketplaces.”

  • On Medicaid Expansion, History Matters

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman discusses the history of the battles over the ACA’s provisions that were designed to expand coverage for the uninsured, which helps explain the effort to cut federal funding for the Medicaid expansion today. The real underlying issues, he says, are the same divisions that have always plagued the debate about covering the uninsured.

  • The Sad State of Trust in the CDC and FDA

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, KFF’s President and CEO Drew Altman discusses how the low levels of trust in the CDC and FDA today seen in KFF’s recent survey findings present a danger should the country face another epidemic.

  • The Debate About Enhanced Premium Tax Credits Begins to Emerge (Finally)

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, president and CEO Drew Altman discusses why debate about extending the ACA enhanced tax credits set to expire this year has been slow to develop, and why it could matter to Republicans politically if the tax credits are not extended.

  • Decoding the HHS Reorganization

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman examines the implications of Secretary Kennedy’s reorganization of HHS and why it’s a sharp break from past efforts to reorganize the department.

  • Why Most States Will Not Replace Federal Medicaid Cuts

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest Beyond the Data column, KFF’s President and CEO Drew Altman discusses how difficult it will be for states to replace lost federal Medicaid funding should Congress make significant cuts.