Classifying Misoprostol and Mifepristone as Controlled Substances: Implications for the Management of Non-Abortion Related Conditions April 3, 2025 Issue Brief This data note analyzes employer-sponsored insurance and Medicaid claims data to see how mifepristone and misoprostol—two drugs used in the medication abortion regimen—are prescribed for reasons other than abortion including management of miscarriages, abnormal bleeding or hemorrhage, as well as IUD insertions and other conditions.
Health Spending Issues to Watch This Year April 10, 2025 Issue Brief KFF and the Peterson Center on Healthcare examine market trends contributing to rising health costs and identify several potential federal and state policy issues to watch throughout 2025, including high-cost drugs, federal funding cuts, and workforce shortages.
After Pandemic-Era Policies and Enhanced Funding End, State Medicaid Officials Report Enrollment Declines and Upward Cost Pressures October 23, 2024 News Release States expect national Medicaid enrollment to decline by about 4% and state Medicaid spending to rise by 7% in fiscal year (FY) 2025. These rates follow a larger but anticipated enrollment decline and state spending increase in FY 2024, as pandemic-era policies and federal funding expired, according to KFF’s 24th…
International Comparison of Health Systems May 28, 2024 Page This Health Policy 101 chapter explores the performance of the U.S. health system on a number of cost, outcomes, and quality measures by comparing it with those in similarly large and wealthy OECD nations. It highlights that despite significant spending, Americans have shorter life expectancies and encounter more barriers to health care, influenced by both the health system’s structure and broader socioeconomic factors.
Medicaid Coverage of and Spending on GLP-1s November 4, 2024 Issue Brief This brief examines the implications of rising prescriptions for costly GLP-1 drugs for state Medicaid programs as more states consider covering the drugs for weight loss. It examines recent trends in Medicaid prescriptions and gross spending on GLP-1s, and explores the potential implications of expanding coverage obesity drugs for Medicaid programs.
Weighted Average Monthly Premium for Medicare Part D Stand-alone Prescription Drug Plans November 7, 2024 State Indicator
A Current Snapshot of the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit October 9, 2024 Issue Brief This brief provides an overview of the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit, including current data on plan availability, enrollment, and spending and financing, and highlights recent changes under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Proposed Coverage of Anti-Obesity Drugs in Medicare and Medicaid Would Expand Access to Millions of People with Obesity November 26, 2024 Blog This policy watch examines the implications of new proposed regulations that would allow Medicare and require Medicaid to cover drugs used to treat obesity, including a relatively new class of highly effective but costly drugs known as GLP-1s.
How Medicare Negotiated Drug Prices Compare to Other Countries December 19, 2024 Issue Brief This analysis finds that Medicare’s negotiated prices for 10 high-expenditure prescription drugs are lower than what private Medicare drug plans had been paying, but still much higher than the prices available in 11 other wealthy nations.. It is available on the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker.
The Health Wonk Shop: Probing the Legal Arguments in the Drug Industry’s Challenges to Medicare Drug Price Negotiations September 12, 2023 Event With the Biden administration’s announcement of the first 10 drugs to be negotiated for Medicare as part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), an array of legal challenges from the pharmaceutical industry is potentially the biggest obstacle to implementation. In court filings, individual drugmakers and the industry’s main lobbying group…