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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.
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Health Policy 101 is a comprehensive guide covering fundamental aspects of U.S. health policy and programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, employer-sponsored insurance, the uninsured population, health care costs and affordability, women's health issues, and health care politics. The Health Care Costs and Affordability chapter explores trends in health care costs in the U.S. and the factors that contribute to this spending. It also examines how health care spending varies across the population, the impact of costs on care affordability and individuals' overall financial vulnerability.
Distribution of Average Household Spending by Medicare and Non-Medicare Households, 2010 Download Source Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey Interview and Expense Files, 2010.
One Quarter Of Public Reports Having Problems Paying Medical Bills, Majority Have Delayed Care Due To Cost Download Source Kaiser Family Foundation Health Tracking Poll (conducted May 8-14, 2012)
The start of the open enrollment period for non-group insurance in 2018 is less than one month away, and the majority of individuals who are targets for enrollment – those who currently purchase their own insurance and those who are uninsured – are unaware of the key dates of the next open enrollment period. This report, focusing on enrollees in the non-group market, compares the experiences of individuals who purchase their own insurance through an…
A new nationally-representative survey of women from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that coverage rates for women are at all-time highs and use of preventive services is on the rise, but many women still face a wide range of affordability and other access challenges. Conducted in the summer and fall of 2017, the survey provides a national overview of women’s health care coverage, access, affordability, and experiences among nonelderly women (ages 18 to 64) in the U.S. Highlights…
More than four years after the implementation of the Medicaid expansion included in the Affordable Care Act, debate and controversy around the implications of the expansion continue. Despite a large body of research that shows that the Medicaid expansion results in gains in coverage, improvements in access and financial security, and economic benefits for states and providers, some argue that the Medicaid expansion has broadened the program beyond its original intent diverting spending from the…
A new Kaiser Family Foundation analysis finds that more than half (54% or 5.9 million) of the 10.7 million people who are uninsured and eligible to purchase an Affordable Care Act marketplace plan in 2018 could pay less in premiums for health insurance than they would owe as an individual mandate tax penalty for lacking coverage.
The number of uninsured is down. Health spending has moderated. But health is on the public’s mind. Drew Altman helps explain why in this Axios column.
Higher cost sharing in private insurance has been credited with helping to slow the growth of health care costs in recent years. For families with low incomes or moderate incomes, however, high deductibles, out-of-pocket limits and other cost sharing can be a potential barrier to care and may lead these families to significant financial difficulties. This issue brief uses information from the Federal Reserve Board's 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances to look at how household…
With the Supreme Court set to hear oral arguments in King v. Burwell on March 4, a new Policy Insight from the Kaiser Family Foundation's Larry Levitt and Gary Claxton explores the policy implications for consumers and insurance markets if the Court were to side with the plaintiffs in the challenge to the Affordable Care Act’s consumer subsidies. A second issue brief by KFF’s MaryBeth Musumeci, a policy analyst and an attorney, explains the legal…
This infographic examines public opinion on prescription drug costs in the United States as part of the Visualizing Health Policy infographic series, produced in partnership with the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
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