Events

Primary care has historically served as the backbone of our nation’s health care system, with patients often maintaining a relationship with a primary-care provider to guide their care over a period of years. Yet, the U.S. emphasizes primary care less than other high-income countries. On Wednesday, April 3 a panel of primary-care experts joined Larry Levitt, KFF’s executive vice president for health policy, for a 45-minute discussion on the current state of primary care in the country, including the extent of the shortage, how it varies geographically and for different populations, the impact on people’s health, and what can be done to address it.

Nearly 1 in 5 consumers with health insurance say their insurer delayed or denied care in the past year due to its requirements for prior authorization, a process through which insurers can require patients to obtain approval in advance before they will agree to cover specific services. On February 22, a panel of four experts joined Larry Levitt, KFF’s executive vice president for health policy, for a 45-minute discussion addressing the future of prior authorization requirements in health care. The panel discussed why insurers use prior authorization, its impact on patients and providers, and how the new regulations may change current practices. They also examined the potential for further regulatory or legislative actions to address ongoing concerns.

On Dec. 5, KFF Health News hosted a virtual conversation about “Dying Broke,” our joint investigation with The New York Times into America’s long-term care crisis and what can be done to mitigate its growing financial and emotional toll.

Amid low unemployment and rising demand for services, today’s health care workforce is under pressure from several directions, including worker strikes; shortages of trained staff; and proposed new staffing standards for nurses and aides in nursing facilities. On November 16, a panel of three experts joined Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF, for a 45-minute discussion focused on the diverse challenges facing the health care workforce.

On November 14, 2023 KFF and the National Association of Medicaid Directors (NAMD) held a web briefing to discuss the latest trends in Medicaid enrollment and spending and highlight key Medicaid policy changes that states implemented in state FY 2023 or plan to implement in FY 2024.

KFF held a web event on September 20, 2023 to discuss Medicare marketing practices in advance of the open enrollment period, which begins Oct. 15. As part of the event, KFF released a new analysis of television ads that aired during last year’s open enrollment season and share insights from focus groups with enrollees about their perceptions of the marketing efforts.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved Opill—the first over-the-counter daily oral contraceptive pill in the United States. Beginning in early 2024, people will be able to purchase Opill without a prescription, expanding options for contraceptive access across the country. On September 15, 2023, a panel of experts joined Laurie Sobel, associate director for KFF’s Women’s Health Policy program, to explore approaches to covering over-the-counter oral contraception without a prescription. The panel discussed lessons learned from the implementation of private insurance or Medicaid coverage from the perspectives of various stakeholders.

Watch an online conversation led by Céline Gounder, a physician-epidemiologist and the host of “Eradicating Smallpox,” Season 2 of the “Epidemic” podcast. The docuseries explores the parallels between the campaign to end a centuries-old disease and the challenges public health faces today.

With the Biden administration’s announcement of the first 10 drugs to be negotiated for Medicare as part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), an array of legal challenges from the pharmaceutical industry is potentially the biggest obstacle to implementation. On Tuesday, September 12, two legal experts and a health policy expert joined Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF, for a 45-minute discussion about the legal issues underpinning these lawsuits and how they intersect with the policy goals of the legislation.

New weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Wegovy (semaglutide) and Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro (tirzepatide), could be transformative for people who struggle with obesity and obesity-related medical conditions, but there are major questions to consider related to insurance coverage, the cost of the drugs, and who has access. On August 4, three experts joined Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF, for a 45-minute “Health Wonk Shop” discussion about the questions surrounding what a new generation of weight loss drugs means for patients and payers.