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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.
This volume shares updates from the most recent CDC advisory panel meeting, changes to the CDC webpage on autism and vaccines, and polling on trust in news organizations. Additionally, it shares recent developments in AI and social media policy and new KFF poll findings about perceptions of mifepristone’s safety and prevalence.
In a new column, President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman forecasts eight things to look for in health policy in 2026. “First and foremost,” he writes, “is the role health care affordability will play in the midterms.” And, he notes: “The average cost of a family policy for employers could approach $30,000 and cost sharing and deductibles will rise again after plateauing for several years.”
Prior authorization review frustrates patients and physicians, but we likely can’t just eliminate it. In his new column, President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman discusses why, and why the focus is now instead on “doing it smarter.” Altman writes: “A proposal to eliminate prior authorization altogether could be the single most tangible and popular health reform idea a candidate could make. But, in our fragmented health system, with no great way to control costs or limit unnecessary care, we seem to be stuck with prior authorization review…and most payers are now trying to ‘do prior authorization review smarter.’”
This volume examines recent social media and AI policy changes; conflicting studies on COVID-19 vaccines and cancer; ACOG guidance on contraceptive misinformation; an alternative to the CDC’s MMWR; the Texas AG’s Tylenol lawsuit; and findings from a recent KFF Tracking Poll on trust in health care apps and websites that use AI.
In a new column, President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman discusses new KFF survey data that shows that a surprising share of older adults with Medicare are using health tech regularly, and a solid majority support many of CMS’ goals to make it more widely available. But there are also big income gaps in the use of health tech, and concerns about AI, privacy, and other barriers to rapid and more widespread adoption. “Apparently… a lot of Medicare beneficiaries—but not all beneficiaries equally—are ready for more health tech, and have become tech savvy to survive,” Altman writes.
This volume shares findings from the KFF/The Washington Post Survey of Parents about exposure to and trust in children’s health content on social media, along with misleading claims following the approval of a generic version of mifepristone, reports of autism possibly being added to the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, and patients using AI chatbots to interpret lab results.
This volume analyzes false narratives about autism rates in Cuba and among Amish people in the U.S.; health-related cases before the Supreme Court, including challenges to bans on conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ minors and school vaccine mandates; and the limitations of AI chatbots as primary sources of health information.
This volume explores findings from the KFF-Washington Post Survey of Parents on views of childhood vaccines; how ACIP may have contributed to concerns about hepatitis B and COVID-19 vaccines; recent HHS warnings about alleged links between Tylenol use in pregnancy and autism; and AI-generated deepfakes impersonating doctors to sell products.
This volume explores confusion around COVID-19 booster eligibility as federal recommendations shift and conflicts with guidance from physician organizations; Florida’s decision to end school vaccine mandates; and research demonstrating that artificial intelligence chatbots can provide generally sound advice, but struggle to make personalized recommendations.
In July 2025, the Trump administration announced a new effort (“Making Health Tech Great Again”) towards health data interchange.. This brief describes the new, voluntary Trump administration interoperability initiative, provides an overview of key health information technology laws and regulations, and highlights some of the challenges and limitations of these efforts.
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