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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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The latest KFF Health Misinformation Tracking Poll examines misinformation related to the measles vaccine and the public’s views of the U.S. government and social media companies’ role in moderating false claims online.
This policy watch examines the United States’ measles elimination status, including what it means to eliminate measles, whether the current measles outbreak could threaten the country’s measles elimination status, and what losing that status might mean for measles control.
As Congress reauthorizes the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), accurate estimates of the number of children who are eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP but remain uninsured are critical for policy and budget development. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) concluded that there are between 5 and 6 million children who are uninsured and eligible for Medicaid and SCHIP. CBO’s assessment is in sharp contrast to estimates released recently by the Bush Administration that indicating there…
This issue brief provides key findings from the Kaiser Survey of Children's Health Coverage, including that many low- and middle-income working families with an uninsured child do not have access to employer-sponsored health insurance. The telephone survey of parents that was conducted in 2007 to learn more about children’s access to coverage and care and the health care cost-related pressures facing their families. Issue Brief (.pdf)
This issue brief examines the health care needs and health costs of children and analyzes the specific health care needs of two children in particular, including one with serious health challenges. The findings have implications for the health reform debate as policymakers consider minimum standards for coverage, required cost sharing amounts and limits on covered benefits in health plans. Issue Brief (.pdf)
Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment (EPSDT) coverage offered through the Medicaid program has played an important and unique role for low-income children with disabilities, and maintaining this support is a key concern. This issue brief discusses the challenges and implications for young people with disabilities when they become adults and lose their EPSDT benefits and how recent changes to the Deficit Reduction Act give states an opportunity to increase the availability of services…
Building an On-Ramp to Children's Health Coverage: A Report on California's Express Lane Eligibility Program This report documents the results from California’s Express Lane Eligibility (ELE) initiative through the school lunch program (now one year into implementation), which has been piloted in 72 schools in 5 school districts in the state. ELE is an enrollment strategy that targets large numbers of uninsured children, who are eligible for the federal-state programs Medicaid and SCHIP, where they…
The to extend the SCHIP program was passed with bi-partisan support in the Congress and vetoed by the President on October 3, 2007. This brief provides an overview of SCHIP and of key provisions in CHIPRA. Issue Brief (.pdf)
A new side-by-side examination of California's Medicaid program (Medi-Cal) and CHIP program (Healthy Families) shows how these two low-income health coverage programs differ in structure, eligibility, enrollment process, service delivery and scope. This California case study helps to illustrate differences between Medicaid and CHIP. SIDE-BY-SIDE Download
This report provides current national and state-level data on the number of persons enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP. In addition to identifying recent trends in Medicaid and CHIP enrollment, this report also examines trends in the various eligibility categories within Medicaid. The report reveals that enrollment in Medicaid increased by 1.1 million individuals, or 3.6 percent, in December 1999 compared to the previous December. Executive Summary Report Link to December 2001 Data Update
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