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KFF Health Tracking Poll: MAHA and the Midterms

Chemical food additive and pesticide concerns associated with the Make America Health Again (MAHA) movement are shared broadly across the public. But when it comes to voters, health care costs are a higher priority and bigger motivator, even among MAHA supporters, a new KFF Health Tracking Poll finds. When asked to identify their most important health priority for government to address, far more MAHA-supporting voters identify lowering the cost of health care (42%) than other issues more closely associated with the movement.

Affordable care act

ACA Marketplace Survey Feature Image - Website

Cost Concerns and Coverage Changes: A Follow-Up Survey of ACA Marketplace Enrollees

This KFF survey is a follow-up survey of adults who had ACA Marketplace insurance in 2025. The survey examines the cost concerns and coverage changes of Marketplace enrollees following the end of the enhanced premium tax credits and finds that half of returning enrollees say their health care costs are “a lot higher” and most expect to cut back on basic household expenses to afford coverage.

Health System Tracker

What Are the Recent Trends in Employer-Based Health Coverage? Employer-sponsored health insurance is the largest source of health coverage for people under 65, but its reach is uneven.

How Does U.S. Life Expectancy Compare to Other Countries? The life expectancy gap between the U.S. and peer countries decreased from 4.1 years in 2023 to 3.7 years in 2024 as U.S. mortality dropped.

How Does Cost Affect Access to Health Care? In 2024, about 1 in 6 adults reported delaying or not getting healthcare due to cost, including medical or mental health care.

How Does Health Spending in the U.S. Compare to Other Countries? While the U.S. still spends the most in total dollars, eight OECD nations had a higher percentage increase in per-person health spending in 2024.

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  • Demand Effects of Recent Changes in Prescription Drug Promotion

    Report

    The rapid increase in DTC advertising for prescription drugs has focused attention on its role in drug spending and prescribing. A new study by researchers at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology looks at the effect of direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising on spending for prescription drugs. The study found that, on average, a 10% increase in DTC advertising of drugs within a therapeutic drug class resulted in a 1% increase in sales of the…

  • Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard University National Survey of Americans’ Views on Consumer Protection in Managed Care – News Release

    Other Post

    Kaiser/Harvard National Survey of Americans' Views On Consumer Protection In Managed Care Public Supports Broad Range Of Proposals For Federal Consumer Protection In Managed Care, But Potential Consequences Raised By Critics Also Hit Home Embargoed for release until: 9:30 a.m. ET, Wednesday, January 21, 1998 For further information contact: Matt James or Tina Hoff Access to Specialists Public's Number One Consumer Protection Priority Washington, DC -- As the debate over regulation of the health care…

  • Kaiser/Harvard National Survey of Americans’ Views on Managed Care

    Report

    A survey of Americans' attitudes toward managed care, including comparisons between consumers in managed care versus those in traditional fee-for-service plans. The survey was designed and analyzed by researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard University and conducted by telephone by Princeton Survey Research Associates with 1,204 adults nationwide between August 22 and September 23,1997. A sample of 500 adults in California and 500 adults in Massachusetts were also surveyed. The toplines for California…

  • MarketFacts: A Financial Overview of the Managed Care Industry

    Fact Sheet

    A fact sheet on the growing influence of for-profit organizations; trends in the stock prices of HMOs and health services companies compared to the overall stock market; recent HMO activity such as premium increases and mergers and acquisitions; and issues related to the financial aspects of HMOs. Fact Sheet Fact Sheet

  • Managed Care Consumer Protections Offered by Medium and Large Employers – Fact Sheet

    Fact Sheet

    Managed Care Consumer Protections Offered by Medium and Large Employers November 1998 Background During the past year, Congress and the states considered a number of proposals that would have provided additional protections to consumers in health insurance plans, particularly managed care plans. Among the key issues raised in these debates was how much the protections would increase health insurance premiums, which depends in part on the extent to which these proposed protections are already in…

  • Beneath the Averages: An Analysis of Medicare and Private Expenditures

    Report

    This report compares Medicare and private health insurance per capita spending between 1970 and 1997, demonstrating that Medicare has done better or as well as the private sector in controlling the growth in health spending. Using National Health Expenditure accounts data, the analysis reveals the cumulative increase in per capita health care spending was lower for Medicare than the private sector between 1970 and 1997. Medicare most likely maintained its cumulative advantage, due to the…

  • Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard University School of Public Health:  Update on Americans’ Views and Experiences in Managed Care

    Poll Finding

    Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard University School of Public Health: Update on Americans' Views and Experiences in Managed Care The Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard University School of Public Health: Update on Americans' Views and Experiences in Managed Care is based on findings from the April 1998 Kaiser Harvard News Interest Index. The survey was designed and analyzed by researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard University. Nationwide interviews were conducted by telephone with 1,201 adults, 18 years…

  • Protection in Managed Care Plans: A Side-by-Side Comparison of Proposal Federal Legislation – Report

    Report

    Side-By-Side Comparison Of Proposed Federal Legislation For Consumer Protection In Managed Care Plans Nicole Tapay, Karen Pollitz, Jalena Curtis Institute for Health Care Research and Policy Georgetown University Medical Center July 18, 1997 Issue Summary Over the past decade, an increasing number of Americans have been receiving their health care coverage through HMOs, PPOs and other types of managed care entities. The growing influence of managed care, in turn, has led consumers and state and…

  • Health Issues in the 2000 Presidential Election

    Other Post

    A Comparison of Proposals This report presents basic, nonpartisan information to help readers compare the leading presidential candidates' proposals on health care issues, including health coverage for the uninsured, managed care and patients' rights, Medicare reform, prescription drug coverage for seniors, and long-term care. Part of a joint effort of the League of Women Voters and the Kaiser Family Foundation to educate and engage the public on key health policy issues, this side-by-side comparison is…