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.
Health Policy 101 is a comprehensive guide covering fundamental aspects of U.S. health policy and programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, employer-sponsored insurance, the uninsured population, health care costs and affordability, women's health issues, and health care politics. The Public Health chapter examines how public health is governed and delivered in the United States. It includes explanations of key public health frameworks, services, capabilities and characteristics, how the public health system works in state, local and territorial governments, and public health funding, workforce, and communication challenges in an era of declining trust.
The February 2020 KFF Health Tracking Poll examines the public's awareness of and concerns about the Coronavirus, following its spread across China and around the globe. The public is concerned about the potential economic and health impacts of the virus on the U.S. and on them and their families. A majority of the public and majorities across partisans say the U.S. is currently doing enough to prevent the spread of the virus.
On March 18, 2020, KFF held a reporters-only web briefing with its key policy and public opinion experts to discuss the nation’s rapidly changing public and policy responses to contain the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic across the country and the world.
New federal legislation will require most private health plans to cover testing for the coronavirus with no cost sharing. Some states have adopted similar requirements for insurers they regulate, and many private insurance companies will voluntarily expand coverage for testing. However, some private coverage will not be subject to these requirements. To date, fewer changes have been adopted or considered with respect to treatment for complications from the disease. This brief reviews current coverage standards for private health plans and how these may change in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This data note examines the characteristics of health care workers who are potentially ineligible for the Families First Coronavirus Response Act’s emergency paid sick leave.
As schools prepare for Fall, this brief examines what's known about children and COVID-19, including the risk the virus poses to children and the risk of children becoming infected and transmitting to others, and the experiences of other countries that reopened classrooms.
With coronavirus cases rising and businesses shutting down, four in 10 (39%) U.S. residents say they already have lost a job or income due to the crisis, the latest KFF Health Tracking Poll finds.
With President Trump and some Republican governors pushing to restart the nation’s economy, most of the public (80%) supports strict shelter-in-place policies to limit the coronavirus’ spread compared to just one in five (19%) who say these measures pose unnecessary burdens and cause more harm than good, the latest KFF Health Tracking Poll finds.
This issue brief provides a snapshot of key public health challenges in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. It discusses topics such as mortality, food, water, sanitation, health care infrastructure, and mental health on the island in the wake of the storm.
This fact sheet presents demographic, economic, and health indicators of the U.S. Virgin Islands and briefly discusses some of the territory's short and long-term challenges facing the territory after Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck the island in September 2017.
This partnership survey from The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation explores how Puerto Ricans are faring one year after Hurricane Maria struck the U.S. territory. This face-to-face survey of those living in Puerto Rico examines the impact the hurricane had on their lives, including their housing situation, financial status, and mental and physical health. It also covers issues of access to water and electricity and Puerto Ricans' views of the government’s response to the storm and its recovery. This is the first, and only, comprehensive, island-wide representative survey to assess a broad array of impacts from Hurricane Maria and hear directly from the people of Puerto Rico about what they experienced and what the ongoing needs are.
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