Public Health


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.

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  • Public Opinion on Chronic Illness in America

    Feature

    The April 2018 Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds six in ten say they or someone in their immediate family have a chronic health condition that requires ongoing medical treatment, and a third of those dealing with a chronic condition requiring ongoing medical care say they or their household have had problems paying medical bills in the past 12 months. This poll finding also looks at how the public views policies aimed at preventing chronic disease in America.

  • Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: November 2015

    Feature

    As the problem of prescription painkiller abuse has captured greater attention from policymakers and the media, the November Kaiser Health Tracking Poll explores the public’s connection to and knowledge of the issue, as well as their views of how to address it. A surprising 56 percent of the public say they have some personal connection to the issue – either because they say they know someone who has taken a prescription painkiller that wasn’t prescribed to them, know someone who has been addicted, or know someone who has died from a prescription painkiller overdose. While views of the health care law have been narrowly divided for much of the year, this month more say they have an unfavorable view of the law than a favorable one. The poll also includes views of the uninsured during the third open enrollment period under the health care law.

  • Why Bolstering Trust in Journalism Could Help Strengthen Trust in Medicine

    Perspective

    This perspective highlights the important relationship between medicine and trust in news media and articulates three ways that clinicians, health care organizations, and journalists might begin to rebuild the foundation of trust on which both medicine and journalism rely. Co-authored by KFF's David Rousseau, Vineet M. Arora of University of Chicago Medicine, and Gary Schwitzer of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health, it appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

  • Nearly 6 in 10 Older Americans Don’t Know When or Where They Can Get a COVID-19 Vaccine; Black and Hispanic Adults among the Groups Least Likely to Have Enough Information

    News Release

    Despite Optimism about COVID-19 Vaccines in the Future, Half Say They are Frustrated with the Current Situation and Nearly a Quarter are Angry While older Americans are a high-priority group for getting a COVID-19 vaccine, the latest KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor report finds that, among those who have not yet been vaccinated, most people ages 65 and…

  • KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor: January 2021

    Report

    This KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor report shows nearly half of the public now wants to get a vaccine as soon as possible, reflecting a rise in enthusiasm across racial and ethnic groups since December. It also examines information needs, worries about the vaccine, effective messages and views of vaccine distribution.

  • COVID-19 Has Claimed the Lives of 100,000 Long-Term Care Residents and Staff

    Policy Watch

    More than 100,000 residents and staff have died in long-term care facilities since the start of the pandemic. This post discusses the implications of the likely rise in cases due to holiday gatherings and the share of total COVID-19 deaths that have happened in long-term care facilities.

  • Comparing Trump and Biden on COVID-19

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief compares President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden on their records, actions and proposals related to the COVID-19 pandemic. It includes a general overview of their respective approaches, followed by a detailed side-by-side.