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For the first time, 1 in every 3 people with Medicare is enrolled in Medicare Advantage, the private Medicare plans that have played an increasingly large role in the Medicare program over the past decade, according to a new analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
A new brief on the Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker finds that the quality of the U.S. health system is improving in many areas, but comparable countries continue to outperform the United States on key measures.
More than one third of the nation’s 15,500 nursing homes, accounting for 39 percent of all nursing home residents, received relatively low ratings of 1 or 2 stars under the federal government’s recently revamped Five-star Quality Rating System, according to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
In September 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a new opportunity for states to leverage federal funding on health care: the Advancing All-Payer Health Equity Approaches and Development (AHEAD) model. With this model, CMS – under the auspices of the CMS Innovation Center, also known as CMMI -- aims to reduce the rate of growth in health care spending, improve people's health, and reduce disparities in health outcomes. This issue brief answers some key questions about the new model and explores considerations for potential state and private participants.
This brief summarizes findings from 20 studies published between January 1, 2018 and April 1, 2023 that compare quality of care and beneficiary experiences between people of color in Medicare Advantage and White enrollees, or the total Medicare Advantage population.
With a renewed emphasis on health care quality driven by the Affordable Care Act, this polling data note examines historical trends in Americans' reliance on quality ratings and how their perceptions have changed over time. Data Note (.
Health of the Healthcare System is a diagnostic look at the state of our healthcare system. How does the U.S. healthcare system compare to health systems of other high-income countries, and how has it fared over time? Kaiser Health News and former-NPR reporter, Julie Rovner, takes us through a check-up of our system by assessing four key areas: how healthy we are, the quality of care we receive, how much it costs, and how accessible it is.
This chart collection compare health outcomes, quality of care, and access to services between the U.S. and peer countries. While inconsistent and imperfect metrics make it difficult to firmly assess system-wide health quality in the U.S., a review of the available data prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic suggests that in most of these measures, the U.S. has lagged behind comparably large and wealthy countries.
Mergers and acquisitions involving hospitals and other health care providers are drawing attention from federal and state regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission, and policymakers amid concerns that such consolidations can reduce competition and contribute to the high costs of health care.
Enrollment in Medicare Advantage continues to climb steadily as spending reductions enacted in the Affordable Care Act reduce historical overpayments to the private plans, according to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. But limits on out-of-pocket spending for Medicare-covered services are rising, providing less protection for enrollees with relatively high health care expenses.
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