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This issue brief analyzes enrollment and spending trends related to the Affordable Care Act’s Medicaid expansion ahead of the coronavirus pandemic and examines potential consequences of recent enrollment increases.
International Assistance for Global Health and HIV/AIDS in the Developing World The Foundation produces two separate annual reports that help to track funding from the G8, European Commission and other donor governments who collectively provide the bulk of international assistance for global health priorities, including HIV/AIDS, through bilateral programs and contributions to multilateral organizations, including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Donor Funding for Health in Low- & Middle- Income Countries: This…
This Part D Data Spotlight documents the wide variations across the private stand-alone drug plans with respect to coverage of drugs, what enrollees pay for those drugs, and restrictions and limitations placed on their use. These variations have potentially significant implications for beneficiaries’ access to medications and out-of-pocket costs. The spotlight is one in a series analyzing key aspects of the Medicare Part D drug plans that will be available to beneficiaries in 2010. The…
In the debates around the health reform law and its implementation, little attention has been given to the law's provisions supporting long-term care. This briefing offered an overview of these provisions, such as the CLASS Act, a new national, voluntary insurance program to help working adults finance services and supports that they may need in the future, and the Community First Choice Option, which helps Medicaid recipients get attendant care at home. This October 1…
In April 2011, as part of its 2012 budget resolution, the U.S. House included a proposal to reduce Medicare spending by transforming the program into a system sometimes called "premium support" or vouchers. Such an approach also has been a central element of other proposals by national leaders seeking to reduce the federal deficit and national debt. This Kaiser Family Foundation brief reviews the evolution of the premium support concept, examines key policy decisions and…
One of the most interesting conversations on a health topic happened recently on The Daily Show between Bono and Jon Stewart. Bono told Stewart that we were "at the beginning of the end of the AIDS epidemic," promising an announcement the next day that would explain how a combination of early treatment, treatment for pregnant women, and circumcision, would turn the epidemic around if the American people would continue to put money into the cause.…
The Senate Committee on Appropriations released its FY 2023 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPs) (links to bill and report) and Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor HHS) (links to bill and report) appropriations bills and accompanying reports on July 28, 2022. The SFOPs bill includes funding for U.S. global health programs at the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), while the Labor HHS bill includes…
We review several policy options to constrain health care spending, primarily by putting downward pressure on provider prices, including price regulation, global budgets, and spending growth targets.
The U.S territories have faced an array of longstanding fiscal and health challenges that were exacerbated by recent natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic. This policy watch examines how Medicaid funding for the territories works, the current allotments, and how the Build Back Better Act (BBA) would change Medicaid funding for the territories going forward. While a version of BBBA has passed the house, its fate in the Senate remains uncertain.
The Build Back Better (BBB) Act proposes reducing disproportionate share hospital (DSH) allotments by 12.5% starting in federal fiscal year (FFY) 2023 and places limits on Medicaid uncompensated care (UCC) pools for non-expansion states. This policy watch explains what these payments are, what changes have been tied to the ACA, and examines potential implications of changes included in the BBB.
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