State Policies for Expanding Medicaid Coverage of Community Health Worker (CHW) Services January 23, 2023 Issue Brief Community Health Workers (CHWs) are frontline workers who have close relationships with the communities they serve, allowing them to better liaise and connect community members to health care systems. States may authorize Medicaid payment for certain CHW services under state plan or Section 1115 demonstration authority. States may allow or require managed care organizations (MCOs) to provide CHW services or include CHWs in care teams. Many states use CHW services to address the health needs of targeted populations including enrollees with chronic conditions or complex behavioral or physical health needs, enrollees receiving targeted case management services, or frequent users of health care services
A Look at Strategies to Address Behavioral Health Workforce Shortages: Findings from a Survey of State Medicaid Programs January 10, 2023 Issue Brief State Medicaid strategies to address the behavioral health workforce shortage fall into four key areas: increasing rates, reducing burden, extending the workforce, and incentivizing participation.
KHN and Guardian US Win National Press Club Award for “Lost on the Frontline” December 8, 2021 News Release KFF’s Kaiser Health News (KHN) and Guardian US have won the National Press Club’s top award for online journalism for their “Lost on the Frontline” investigation. The year-long project documented the lives of more than 3,600 health care workers in the U.S. who died after contracting covid-19 on the job.…
KFF/Post Survey Reveals the Serious Mental Health Challenges Facing Frontline Health Care Workers a Year into the COVID-19 Pandemic April 6, 2021 News Release About 1 in 6 Tested Positive for COVID-19, though Few Experienced Major Symptoms; Those Working in Nursing Homes or Assisted Living Facilities Most Likely to Report Testing Positive More than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, a majority of frontline health care workers say the crisis is taking a toll…
KFF/The Washington Post Frontline Health Care Workers Survey April 6, 2021 Poll Finding This partnership survey with The Washington Post examines the experiences and attitudes of frontline health care workers during the coronavirus pandemic that overwhelmed many health care settings. With three COVID-19 vaccines currently being distributed to adults across the country, this project takes a look at the toll of the last year on frontline health care workers, including a look at the impact on their mental health and well being.
KFF/Post Survey of Frontline Health Care Workers Finds Nearly Half Remain Unvaccinated March 19, 2021 News Release As of early March, just over half (52%) of frontline health care workers say they have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, leaving 48% who have not, a new KFF/The Washington Post national survey of health care workers finds. Most who work in hospitals (66%) and outpatient…
Both Remote and On-Site Workers are Grappling with Serious Mental Health Consequences of COVID-19 December 22, 2020 Blog This post examines the data about workers’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic and finds that both on-site and at-home workers are facing challenges, though frontline and essential workers, as well as women and workers of color, face disproportionate impacts.
Analysis of Federal Bills to Strengthen Maternal Health Care December 21, 2020 Fact Sheet The bills in this table address a number of related maternity care issues, including extending Medicaid postpartum coverage from 60 days to one year, funding for clinical training on health equity and implicit bias, developing broader networks of maternity care providers in rural areas, and research on the potential benefits of Medicaid coverage for doula care.
New National and State Estimates for Recommended COVID-19 Vaccination Priority Population December 10, 2020 News Release This month the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adopted a recommendation that health care workers and long-term care residents should be the first to receive the COVID-19 vaccine once it is authorized or approved by the FDA. A new KFF analysis estimates there are 15.5 million people working…
Estimates of the Initial Priority Population for COVID-19 Vaccination by State December 10, 2020 Issue Brief This analysis provides new national and state-level estimates of the number of health care workers and long-term care residents who are expected to be part of the group first in line to receive the COVID-19 vaccine to gain insight into how this initial priority population varies across states.