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KFF’s policy research provides facts and analysis on a wide range of policy issues and public programs.
KFF designs, conducts and analyzes original public opinion and survey research on Americans’ attitudes, knowledge, and experiences with the health care system to help amplify the public’s voice in major national debates.
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the organization’s core operating programs.
A comprehensive timeline of public health policy actions by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Trump administration from 2025-2026, with key dates, descriptions, and impacts.
In light of the uncertainty surrounding how states will verify the Medicaid medical frailty exclusion, this issue brief describes how the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) has handled similar administrative challenges.
Countries are seeking to create a new 'pandemic agreement' at WHO to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. This brief explains what the pandemic agreement is, where the U.S. stands on issues included in the agreement, and potential outcomes of the ongoing negotiations. It also evaluates several criticisms of the agreement and the evidence for each.
It depends on the state where you live. Some states require insurance companies to sell Medigap supplement policies to people under age 65, but not all states do. Insurance companies may still voluntarily sell Medigap policies to people under age 65, even in states that do not require insurance companies to sell Medigap policies to people under age 65. However, premiums may be much higher than premiums for people ages 65 and older. If you…
This brief describes federal citizenship and immigration status eligibility and eligibility verification requirements for Medicaid. Eligibility for federally-funded coverage under Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program is limited to U.S. citizens and certain lawfully present immigrants.
This brief gauges Medicaid enrollees’ perspectives on their health insurance, based on findings from KFF’s Survey of Consumer Experiences with Health Insurance, fielded February 21 through March 14, 2023. This brief provides an overview of the survey findings, describes Medicaid enrollees’ views of their health and health coverage, explores problems those with Medicaid experience, compares how Medicaid performs relative to Medicare and private coverage, and reviews variation in Medicaid experiences.
Medicaid is the primary program providing comprehensive health and long-term care to one in five people living in the U.S and accounts for nearly $1 out of every $5 spent on health care. Medicaid is jointly financed by states and the federal government, but states administer Medicaid programs within broad federal rules. Under federal law, Medicaid provides an entitlement to coverage to individuals who are eligible for the program and a guarantee to federal matching dollars for states. State…
In this column, KFF president and CEO Drew Altman explores why health costs weigh heavily among voters' economic concerns, even in an election where health was not a flashpoint. The need to reframe health as a pocketbook issue for voters will be central to the competition for the votes of working class Latino voters, two groups very focused on the cost of living.
As KFF approaches a leadership transition next year, Founding President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman will share a series of occasional columns about key moments in the organization's 37-year history. The first in the series recalls KFF’s (then called the Kaiser Family Foundation) decades-long commitment to South Africa during and after apartheid. Dr. Altman will continue his regular columns about health policy. “The greatest privilege of my life was to be able to work with…
The 22nd annual survey of state Medicaid and CHIP programs officials conducted by KFF and the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families in May 2024 presents a snapshot of actions states have taken to improve systems, processes, and communications during the unwinding, as well as key state Medicaid eligibility, enrollment, and renewals policies and procedures in place as of May 2024. The report focuses on policies for children, pregnant individuals, parents, and other non-elderly…
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