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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.
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This chart collection compare health outcomes, quality of care, and access to services between the U.S. and peer countries. While inconsistent and imperfect metrics make it difficult to firmly assess system-wide health quality in the U.S., a review of the available data prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic suggests that in most of these measures, the U.S. has lagged behind comparably large and wealthy countries.
In general, people in the United States use the health system less than people in comparable countries, and services in the U.S. are consistently more expensive than in countries of similar size and wealth. This slideshow examines price and utilization of several healthcare services, including magnetic resonance imaging, caesarian sections, angioplasty surgery and coronary bypass surgery, through data from the International Federation of Health Plans and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
This analysis explores trends in how the cost of healthcare affects access to care in the U.S. using National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data. In 2024, about 1 in 6 adults (17%) reported delaying or not getting healthcare due to cost
This analysis examines how U.S. health spending compares to health spending in other high-income nations. While the U.S. still spends the most in total dollars, eight OECD nations had a higher percentage increase in per-person health spending in 2024.
A new issue brief examines the role of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) during the coronavirus pandemic, and public health emergencies more broadly. The analysis finds that the VHA has provided assistance to 46 states and D.C., including treating over 270 non-veteran patients with coronavirus.
Rural hospitals fared worse financially in states that have not expanded their Medicaid programs under the Affordable Care Act than in states that expanded Medicaid, a new KFF analysis finds. Nearly one third of all rural hospitals nationally are in the 11 states that have not approved the expansion of their Medicaid programs to cover low-income childless adults, and concerns about their ongoing viability has been an issue in legislative debates about whether to do…
The Health Spending Explorer on the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker helps users examine five decades worth of numbers documenting expenditures by federal and local governments, private insurers, and individuals on 15 categories of health services, including hospitals, physician and clinic care, and prescription drugs.
Most nonprofit hospitals and hospital systems had enough cash on hand in 2022 to cover operating expenses for an extended period of time, though about one-in-10 had relatively low levels to cover their expenses, which potentially could leave them vulnerable in a financial crisis, a new KFF analysis finds.The analysis comes as the hospital industry pushes for increases in Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement levels and Congress considers legislation that would reduce hospital revenues, such as…
A new issue brief based on focus groups conducted by KFF among NHPI adults living in Hawaii and the continental U.S. highlights barriers NHPI people face when accessing health care, including geographic isolation, limited system capacity, and language access. In their own words, participants describe both positive and negative experiences in health care settings and discuss concerns about mental health in their communities.
This chart collection explores price increases in private insurance for common services over time and finds significant geographic variation in prices. For example, the average price of a full knee replacement for those in large employer plans increased from $19,595 in 2003 to $34,063 in 2016, growth of 74% compared to a 28% increase in general inflation. The average price of a knee replacement in New York City is more than twice the price of…
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