Analysis Finds Record 3,148 Medicare Advantage Plans Will be Available in 2020 October 24, 2019 News Release A record 3,148 Medicare Advantage plans will be available across the country as alternatives to traditional Medicare, a new KFF analysis finds. That’s up 15% from last year’s 2,734 plans and results in a typical beneficiary having 28 plans available to them in their local market for the 2020 Medicare…
State Budgets for Fiscal Year 2020 Include Total Medicaid Spending Growth of 6.2 Percent on Average, Even As Enrollment Remains Essentially Flat October 18, 2019 News Release States budgeted for total Medicaid spending to increase at a faster pace than enrollment in fiscal year 2020, driven in part by rising costs for prescription drugs, provider rate increases and higher costs associated with caring for the elderly and disabled, according to KFF’s new 50-state Medicaid budget survey. The…
Poll: About Half of Public Supports a Ban on Both Flavored and All E-Cigarettes, Though Most Young Adults Are Opposed October 17, 2019 News Release With more than 1,000 lung injuries and two dozen deaths nationally associated with vaping and e-cigarettes, a new KFF poll finds a narrow majority (52%) of the public supports a ban on the sale of fruit- and other flavored e-cigarettes, while 44% oppose it. When asked whether all e-cigarettes should…
Many Community Health Centers Report That Immigrant Patients Are Declining to Enroll in Medicaid or Renew Their Coverage Amid Concerns About Changes to Public Charge Rules October 15, 2019 News Release Nearly half (47%) of community health centers report that many or some immigrant patients declined to enroll themselves in Medicaid in the past year, according to a new KFF survey, and nearly a third (32%) of centers say that some patients dropped or decided not to renew such coverage. Interviews…
Visualizing Health Policy: US Public’s Perspective on Prescription Drug Costs October 15, 2019 News Release This Visualizing Health Policy infographic examines public opinion on prescription drug costs in the United States (US). Over the past 20 years, US drug spending has increased by 330% compared to a 208% increase in total US health expenditures. A large majority (78%) of the public see drug company profits…
Medicare Part D Beneficiaries Who Reach the Catastrophic Coverage Limit Can Expect to Pay More Out-of-Pocket for Their Prescription Drugs Next Year October 11, 2019 News Release Medicare Part D enrollees with relatively high out-of-pocket expenses can expect see their costs rise in 2020, according to a new KFF analysis. This is mainly due to an increase in how much enrollees will pay out of pocket for their prescription drugs in the Part D benefit coverage gap…
New Analysis Finds Inpatient Coronavirus Treatment Costs Could Top $20K for Patients with Employer Coverage March 16, 2020 News Release A new issue brief estimates potential coronavirus treatment costs to large employer health plans and their enrollees by looking at typical spending for hospital admissions for pneumonia. The analysis finds that, for pneumonia admissions with major complications and comorbidities, the average total cost is $20,292. In comparison, the average cost…
About 4 in 10 Adults in the U.S. Are At Greater Risk of Developing Serious Illness if Infected with Coronavirus, Due to Age or Underlying Health Conditions March 13, 2020 News Release Based on current understanding of risk, forty-one percent of adults ages 18 and older in the U.S. have a higher risk of developing more serious illness if they become infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, because they are older or have serious underlying health conditions, or both, according to…
New Online Resource Tracks Donor Funding for Coronavirus Response March 10, 2020 News Release While donors have begun providing support to China and other low- and middle-income countries, there is currently no other centralized repository for this information. This tracker provides an accounting of publicly available information on donor funding to date.
Abortion is Back at the Supreme Court: New Analysis of June Medical Services LLC v. Russo March 2, 2020 News Release A KFF brief explains June Medical Services LLC v. Russo, a challenge to a Louisiana abortion regulation that will be heard at the Supreme Court on March 4, 2020.