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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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  • Medicare: The Basics, A Public Dialogue on Health Care: The Future of Medicare

    Other Post

    Medicare: The Basics Part Two A Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation Report Coverage Under Managed Care Plans and Other Options The vast majority of Medicare beneficiaries have their health care bills paid directly by Medicare's traditional fee-for-service program. The rest-nearly 6 million people-are covered under managed care plans, mostly HMOs, which contract with Medicare. Since the mid-1980s, a growing number of beneficiaries have elected to receive the benefits covered by Medicare Parts A and B…

  • Trends in Health Plans Serving Medicaid — 2000 Data Update

    Report

    An updated study follows trends in commercial health plan participation in Medicaid managed care and includes new analyses on the performance of Medicaid-dominated and commercial plans on measures of effective care and access to care, and on the extent to which plans restrict their Medicaid service areas.

  • HIV and Managed Care, Special Supplement to JAIDS

    Other Post

    HIV and Managed Care, Special Supplement to JAIDS Health policy and public health experts examine the politics, practice, and special considerations of providing AIDS/HIV care under a managed care health system. This work was published as a special supplement to JAIDS, the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes and Human Retrovirology, and produced as part of the Kaiser Forums program, an ongoing series of issue-specific briefings at which policy makers, health experts, practitioners, and others…

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

    Other Post

    Part I: Congressional Budget Reconciliation Proposals A. Entities Regulated Issue H.R. 2015--House Budget Bill(Medicare) S. 947--Senate Budget Bill(Medicare) H.R. 2015--House Budget Bill(Medicaid) S. 947--Senate Budget Bill(Medicaid) Establishes new Medicare managed care program, "MedicarePlus;" MedicarePlus plan options include coordinated care plans (HMOs, PPOs), MSA plans (exceptions for MSA plans from some requirements). (Medicare eligibles can still choose the traditional fee-for-service program.) Medicare; established new "Medicare Choice" program. Medicare Choice plan options include fee-for-service, PPOs, point-of-service plans,…

  • Public Opinion Update: The Public, Managed Care, and Consumer Protections

    Fact Sheet

    The Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard School of Public Health monitored consumer experiences with managed care and attitudes toward alternative consumer protection approaches. This Public Opinion Update summarizes key findings from surveys conducted between 1997 and 2001, a period in which the intensity of public debate and media attention paid to managed care issues varied substantially. Public Opinion Update (PDF)

  • Lessons From the Election About Voters and Health

    From Drew Altman

    In this column, KFF president and CEO Drew Altman explores why health costs weigh heavily among voters' economic concerns, even in an election where health was not a flashpoint. The need to reframe health as a pocketbook issue for voters will be central to the competition for the votes of working class Latino voters, two groups very focused on the cost of living.

  • How Medicare Negotiated Drug Prices Compare to Other Countries

    Issue Brief

    This analysis finds that Medicare's negotiated prices for 10 high-expenditure prescription drugs are lower than what private Medicare drug plans had been paying, but still much higher than the prices available in 11 other wealthy nations.. It is available on the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker.

  • The Performance of the Federal Independent Dispute Resolution Process through Mid-2024

    Issue Brief

    The No Surprises Act, which was signed into law by President Trump during his first term and took effect in 2022, aims to protect consumers from certain surprise medical bills. The law established processes to keep the patient out of the payment negotiations between the provider and the plan. In the event of an unsuccessful negotiation, providers and payers enter an independent dispute resolution (IDR) process in which a designated third-party arbitrator examines eligible evidence…

  • Snapshots: Distribution of Out-of-Pocket Spending for Health Care Services

    Issue Brief

    How much people should pay out-of-pocket for health care is a much-debated issue in health policy. New health insurance products with higher out-of-pocket shares are becoming more evident in the private market, and some states are considering ways to increase enrollee financial responsibility in state Medicaid programs.  This paper presents information about current out-of-pocket spending by individuals with the purpose of providing context for future health policy discussions. Current proposals suggest that increasing the amount that…