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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.
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This brief provides an overview of barriers to vaccination that disproportionately affect people of color and discusses how current national recommendations and state vaccine allocation plans address racial equity.
This policy watch provides an overview of how uninsured adults currently access recommended vaccines, how they have accessed COVID-19 vaccines thus far, including what is known about their vaccine uptake, and proposed plans to provide COVID-19 vaccines to uninsured adults this fall and beyond.
This post explores why the share of COVID-19 deaths among those who are vaccinated has risen, Factors include a rising share of the population that is vaccinated, waning immune protection and low uptake of boosters, and changes in immunity among the unvaccinated.
This analysis uses CDC data to look at deaths from COVID-19 for adults 65 and older. The findings show that deaths for older adults doubled from April to July 2022 and stayed high in August, before dropping again in September.
State Medicaid and public health agencies both work to advance the health of their communities, often pursuing similar priorities and serving similar populations. This brief examines findings from KFF's 25th annual Medicaid budget survey, which asked state Medicaid directors about new or enhanced initiatives involving public health in FY 2025 or planned for FY 2026.
The latest KFF Health Tracking Poll shows that Secretary Kennedy continues to be popular among President Trump’s MAGA base and somewhat popular among supporters of his Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, but his appeal beyond those two groups is limited.
For adults who are uninsured, there are limited options for getting a free COVID-19 shot.
Fewer than a quarter of voters want to decrease government involvement in ensuring childhood vaccinations, suggesting the public may not be eager for disruption in this area.
Taken together, the new guidance on clinical trial requirements, the more restricted approval of the Novavax vaccine, and anticipated changes to CDC recommendations add up to fewer Americans eligible for COVID-19 vaccines and more limited access to these vaccines compared to previous years...such a shift would place the U.S. more in line with Australia, Canada, and countries in Europe.
As the debate over mRNA technology continues, public uncertainty about its safety is likely to persist and may even deepen the partisan divide... as well as hinder any efforts to develop new vaccines in response to future pandemics
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