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  • Income and Assets of Medicare Beneficiaries in 2024

    Issue Brief

    This brief examines the income, assets, and home equity of Medicare beneficiaries, overall and by age, race and ethnicity, and gender, using data derived from the Dynamic Simulation of Income Model (DYNASIM) for 2024. The analysis highlights that most Medicare beneficiaries live on relatively low incomes and have modest financial resources to draw upon in retirement if they need to cover costly medical care or long-term services and supports, with notable disparities by age, race and ethnicity, and gender.

  • Impacts of Federal Actions on Extreme Heat and Health

    Issue Brief

    Between 1999 and 2023, the number of heat-related deaths in the U.S. increased by 117%. KFF analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that American Indian or Alaska Native and Black people are at higher risk of experiencing a heat-related death compared to their White counterparts. Estimates suggest that heat events in the U.S result in approximately $1 billion in excess health care costs each year. If left unaddressed, climate change could cost the U.S. economy approximately $14.5 trillion over the next fifty years.

  • Key Facts About Medicare Part D Enrollment, Premiums, and Cost Sharing in 2025

    Issue Brief

    The Medicare Part D program provides an outpatient prescription drug benefit to more than 50 million older adults and people with long-term disabilities in Medicare who enroll in private plans, including stand-alone prescription drug plans (PDPs) to supplement traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans (MA-PDs) that include drug coverage and other Medicare-covered benefits. This brief analyzes Medicare Part D enrollment and costs in 2025 and trends over time, based on data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

  • What Could the Health-Related Provisions in the Reconciliation Bill Mean for Older Adults?

    Issue Brief

    The Trump Administration and Congress are moving quickly to pass legislation that could have significant implications for health coverage of older Americans. The House-passed reconciliation bill awaiting action by the full Senate, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill, includes several provisions that would affect health insurance coverage and well-being of older adults ages 50 and older, including those who are covered by Medicare.

  • Seven Million People with Medicare Spend More Than 10% of Income on Part B Premiums – The Reconciliation Bill Could Drive the Number Higher

    Issue Brief

    People with low incomes and limited financial resources can qualify for the Medicare Savings Programs, through which state Medicaid programs provide financial assistance with Medicare premiums and cost sharing. However, provisions in the GOP’s budget reconciliation bill would make it harder for people to enroll in these programs. Many people with Medicare are facing a relatively high financial burden associated with paying Part B premiums, and the reconciliation bill could drive that number higher.

  • 7 Charts About Public Opinion on Medicaid

    Feature

    This data note provides an overview of recent KFF polling on the public’s views of and connections to Medicaid, the federal-state government health insurance for certain low-income adults and children and long-term care program for adults 65 and older and younger adults with disabilities.

  • KFF Health Tracking Poll: The Public’s Views of Funding Reductions to Medicaid

    Feature

    As Congress works to pass the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," which includes significant changes to Medicaid and the ACA, the latest KFF Health Tracking Poll examines the views of groups that could be most directly impacted by the impending legislation. The poll finds most of the public is worried about the consequences of federal funding reductions to Medicaid, including rural residents, those with lower incomes, and across partisans.

  • Utilization of Health Care Services by Medicaid Expansion Status

    Issue Brief

    Some critics of Medicaid expansion have argued that expansion diverts resources away from other groups of Medicaid enrollees, including people with disabilities and children, and that expansion enrollees are “able-bodied” implying they have minimal health care needs. However, data show that expansion states spend more per enrollee overall and on each eligibility group than non-expansion states and that nearly half of expansion enrollees have a chronic condition. This data note analyzes 2021 Medicaid claims data to compare utilization of health care services among Medicaid expansion enrollees with other Medicaid enrollees in expansion states and to compare utilization of health care services among adult Medicaid enrollees living in expansion and non-expansion states.