The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
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.
KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the organization’s core operating programs.
Beginning in 2014, the Affordable Care Act will expand Medicaid and create new health insurance exchanges that will significantly increase coverage options for citizens and lawfully present immigrants. This brief provides an overview of health coverage for immigrants today and their new coverage options under health reform. Fact Sheet (.pdf)
The Alliance for Health Reform and The Commonwealth Fund sponsored this briefing which focused on three communities that have reformed and harmonized health care payments across payers to improve care: a New York health center that serves a low income population; a Colorado community that pools money from public and private sources to provide care for all patients; and the State of Maryland, which has been using an all payer hospital rate setting system for…
This summary provides an overview of the results of an October 2007 survey conducted jointly by NPR, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and the Harvard School of Public Health on the public’s views and opinions of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program and the pending legislation surrounding its reauthorization. Summary (.pdf)
Medicaid plays a major role in covering more of the uninsured under the new health reform law. The new law includes a significant expansion of Medicaid, an individual requirement to obtain health insurance, and subsidies to help low-income individuals buy coverage through newly established Health Benefit Exchanges. This brief explains the how Medicaid works today and answers some key questions about Medicaid’s role in health reform. Issue Brief (.pdf)
This brief examines uninsured parents and how they could be affected by health reform, including estimates of how many might qualify for coverage under a Medicaid expansion, how many would be eligible for subsidies and how many would not be eligible for such help. Issue Brief (.pdf)
As mobile technology advances and cell phone use continues to increase across demographic groups, there is significant potential to tap these technologies to facilitate enrollment in and retention of health coverage, in both the immediate term and as health reform is implemented. A brief produced in conjunction with The Children's Partnership examines how various tools and strategies, including text messages and smart phone apps, can be used to advance coverage goals. The report focuses especially…
This fact sheet provides key information about the Medicaid program and its role in our health care system and state economies. The nation’s public health insurance program for low-income people is counter-cyclical, expanding during the recent recession to assist millions of individuals and families affected by the loss of jobs and job-based health insurance. While the program has worked as intended, economic conditions have contributed to growing pressure on state budgets and Medicaid funding. This…
The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured is closely following waiver activity to provide information on how these waivers are impacting the uninsured and affecting Medicaid and SCHIP and the coverage provided to low-income beneficiaries. Tennessee Section 1115 Waiver Amendment Proposal Fact Sheet California Section 1115 Waiver Fact Sheet Colorado Section 1115 Waiver Fact Sheet Delaware Section 1115 Waiver Fact Sheet Illinois Section 1115 Waiver Fact Sheet Maine Section 1115 Waiver Fact Sheet New…
This issue brief examines low-income women’s health insurance coverage, experience with health plans and providers, and access to care. The analysis is based on data from the 2001 Kaiser Women’s Health Survey, a nationally representative survey of nearly 4,000 women between the ages of 18 and 64. Issue Brief (.pdf)
Providing health coverage for the entire family can both help to increase coverage of children and assist low-income families in obtaining more affordable health care services. This brief uses data from the 2005 Kaiser Low-Income Coverage and Access Survey to examine health coverage, access and the financial impacts of health care for low-income parents and their families. Issue Brief (.pdf)
© 2026 KFF
