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The MIDTERMS

Democrats Hold a Nearly 2-to-1 Advantage Over Republicans on Handling the Cost of Health Care

Poll: Cost of Health Care and Gas Top Voters’ Midterm Concerns; Democrats Hold Significant Advantage on Health Care Costs and Cost of Living 

With the 2026 midterms about a month away, health care costs remain tied with gas as voters’ top midterm concerns and the Democrats hold a clear edge over the Republicans Party on who voters trust to handle many top electoral issues, including the cost of health care and the cost of living. Two-thirds of U.S. adults now favor Medicare-for-all, a new high in KFF Polling, but support shifts when competing claims from critics and proponents are heard.

New and noteworthy

Americans’ Challenges with Health Care Costs

This data note reviews our recent polling data that finds that many Americans struggle to afford many aspects of health care, including disproportionate shares of uninsured adults, Black and Hispanic adults and those with lower incomes.

Health System Tracker

Is This A Healthcare Economy?

Health care employment has grown faster than other sectors of the economy, with jobs in physician offices, hospitals, outpatient care centers, home health, and other settings increasing over the past year even as the rest of the job market plateaued. 

Cumulative percent change in health sector and non-health sector employment, January 1990 - August 2026

What Are the Recent Trends in Health Sector Employment

Health care employment continues to grow even as hiring across other sectors has plateaued. The health sector added nearly 379,000 jobs over the past year, a 2% increase, compared with just 0.2% growth in other non-farm employment, with outpatient care among the fastest-growing health care settings.

How TrumpRx Brand-Name Drug Prices Compare

TrumpRx prices for brand-name drugs are about as likely to be higher as lower compared to average prices in other wealthy countries, according to an analysis that compares 32 brand-name drugs.

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  • Pulling it Together: Forget Math and Science, Teach Civics (Or Why We Need to Bring Back Schoolhouse Rock)

    Perspective

    I am seldom surprised by our poll findings, but this month’s tracking poll produced a doozy.  Twenty-two percent of the American people think the Affordable Care Act has been repealed, and another 26 percent aren't sure.  Those are surprisingly large numbers even with the 52 percent who still know it is the law of the land. How could a repeal "vote" in the House -- however dramatic but still, only symbolic -- be misunderstood as…

  • Pulling It Together: Repeal

    Perspective

    The House will soon vote to repeal the health reform law, the Senate won’t, and the President would veto it if they did.  So what does a House vote for repeal mean? It is, of course, a campaign promise kept to the political right.  It is also a signal from the Republican leadership that they plan to continue to use opposition to the health reform law as a rallying point for their political base.  Our…

  • Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — December 2010

    Feature

    As 2010 draws to a close, the latest tracking poll shows the public still divided in their views of the health reform law, a sentiment largely unchanged since the law’s enactment in March. Forty-two percent of Americans say they have a generally favorable view of the law, while 41 percent have a generally unfavorable view of it. Seniors, generally more critical of the law than younger people, seem to be softening in their opposition as…

  • Holiday Reminder

    Perspective

    Like you, the holidays always make me think about those who are less fortunate.  Last year around this time, I wrote a"Holiday Reminder" column about the health reform debate and people's economic difficulties.  The drive to pass the health reform law was struggling, and it would struggle even more in the following weeks after the senatorial special election in Massachusetts.  I wondered whether we had lost track of what propelled health care to the top of…

  • Kaiser December Tracking Poll: Public Remains Divided on Health Reform Law; Significant Number of People Struggle Financially

    Perspective

    As 2010 draws to a close, the latest tracking poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation shows the public still divided in their views of the health reform law, a sentiment largely unchanged since the law’s enactment in March. Forty-two percent of Americans say they have a generally favorable view of the law, while 41 percent have a generally unfavorable view of it. As the weak economy continues, the survey finds that a significant number of…

  • Trends in Health Insurance Coverage in the U.S.: The Impact of the Economy

    Event Date:
    Event

    The rising number of uninsured, who they are and how they might obtain health insurance coverage were much debated during the consideration and passage of health reform in the last year. Panelists at this briefing examined the recent health insurance coverage numbers and trends, what they mean, who the newly uninsured are and the impact of being uninsured. They also reviewed what states are doing during the current economic climate and how they are preparing…

  • Rate Review: Spotlight on State Efforts to Make Health Insurance More Affordable

    Other Post

    The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act creates a new federal role to examine “unreasonable increases” in the premiums charged for certain individual and small group health plans. Under the health reform law, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will work with state insurance departments to conduct an annual review of unreasonable rate increases, and insurers must provide justification for such increases to HHS and to the public via their websites. The…

  • Snapshots: Health Benefit Offer Rates and Employee Earnings

    Issue Brief

    Employer-provided health insurance is the primary source of insurance coverage in the United States, covering almost 160 million people.1 About 90 percent of the non-elderly privately-insured population is covered by employer-sponsored plans, meaning that employer decisions about whether to offer health benefits will influence overall rates of insurance coverage in the United States.  Sixty-nine percent of all firms offered health benefits to their employees in 2010.2 It is well-known that highly-paid workers are more likely to…

  • Medicare Spending and Use of Medical Services for Beneficiaries in Nursing Homes and Other Long‐Term Care Facilities: A Potential for Achieving Medicare Savings and Improving the Quality of Care

    Report

    Medicare Spending and Use of Medical Services for Beneficiaries in Nursing Homes and Other Long‐Term Care Facilities: A Potential for Achieving Medicare Savings and Improving the Quality of Care This report documents the relatively high rates of hospital stays, emergency room visits and skilled nursing facility admissions among long-term care facility residents. It finds that Medicare per capita spending for Medicare beneficiaries living in nursing homes, assisted-living centers and other long-term care facilities, $14,538 in…

  • Medicare Advantage 2011 Data Spotlight: Plan Availability and Premiums

    Report

      This Medicare Advantage Data Spotlight provides an overview of recent changes made to the Medicare Advantage program and examines trends in plan participation, premiums and certain benefits. About 12 million people, or nearly a quarter of the Medicare population, are enrolled in Medicare Advantage, the privately administered plans that are an alternative to the traditional fee-for-service Medicare program. The analysis was conducted by a team researchers at Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. and the Kaiser…