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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 issue brief presents findings from the focus groups including caregiver characteristics; physical, emotional, and mental caregiving demands of caregiving; their wages, finances, and opportunities for advancement; and what caregivers would like policymakers to know about their work.
KFF analysis found that over one-fifth of all U.S. COVID-19 deaths occurred in long-term care facilities despite but as of January 14th, 2024, only 38% of residents and 15% of staff were “up-to-date” with their COVID-19 vaccines, which the CDC defines as having received the updated Fall 2023 vaccine. Those rates are lower than uptake was for the 2022 vaccine.
As the start of 2024, many issues are at play that will affect Medicaid coverage, financing, and access. This issue brief provides context for these Medicaid issues and highlights key issues to watch in the year ahead.
This issue brief describes the share of dual-eligible individuals with full Medicaid benefits who use wraparound services, including institutional LTSS, home- and community-based services (HCBS), vision services, dental care, and non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT); and how use of these services varies by state and select demographic characteristics of enrollees.
To help inform the ongoing debate, KFF conducted four focus groups in July and August 2021 with direct care workers and unpaid caregivers who provide HCBS, assisting seniors and people with disabilities with daily self-care and household activities. These focus groups are not necessarily generalizable to all caregivers, but can provide insight into their experiences to help inform current policy debates.
This brief examines 10 key facts about women with Medicare and presents new statistics on the health, economic and functional status of women with Medicare.
This analysis uses the most recently-available data to examine the percentage of nursing facilities that currently meet the minimum staffing requirements in the final rule.
This brief takes a closer look at multiple measures beyond waiver waiting lists to evaluate state choices about optional Medicaid eligibility pathways, spending, and services for seniors and people with disabilities as of 2018. The analysis draws on several KFF resources, including 50-state surveys of Medicaid financial eligibility pathways for seniors and people with disabilities, HCBS waiver programs, and state plan benefits offered, as well as state Medicaid LTSS expenditures reported by Mathematica.
This report provides an in-depth examination of the changes taking place in Medicaid programs across the country. Report findings are drawn from the annual budget survey of Medicaid officials in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. This report examines the reforms, policy changes, and initiatives that occurred in FY 2018 and those adopted for implementation for FY 2019 (which began for most states on July 1, 2018). Key areas covered include changes in eligibility, managed care and delivery system reforms, long-term services and supports, provider payment rates and taxes, covered benefits, and pharmacy and opioid strategies.
This analysis examines the impact of COVID-19 on assisted living facilities, including changes in cases and deaths between June and August 2020, using state-reported data on COVID-19. The analysis finds a significant increase in COVID-19 cases and deaths among residents and staff in assisted living facilities over this two-month period. Due to the incomplete nature of state reporting, these numbers are an undercount.
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