Health Costs

The MIDTERMS

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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  • What’s in the Stars? Quality Ratings of Medicare Advantage Plans, 2010

    Issue Brief

    NEW: Foundation brief looks at implications of 2011 quality ratings for Medicare Advantage plans. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) rates the relative quality of the private plans that are offered to Medicare beneficiaries through the Medicare Advantage program as a way of aiding beneficiaries who are considering enrolling in such a private plan. CMS rates Medicare Advantage plans on a one to five-star scale, with five stars representing the highest quality. This…

  • Pulling it Together: Health Reform’s Six-Month Checkup

    Perspective

    Six months after its enactment, there are two totally different stories to tell about the health-reform law. The public remains split on the law largely along traditional partisan lines. Confusion and misperception are rampant, with more than a third of seniors still thinking the law contains "death panels" (it does not). Yet beneath the political battle lies a success story of early implementation: The federal government that many regard as sluggish and ineffective has turned…

  • Enrollment-Driven Expenditure Growth: Medicaid Spending During the Economic Downturn, FY 2007-2011

    Report

    This report presents data on changes in Medicaid's enrollment and spending between federal fiscal year 2007 and federal fiscal year 2011, a period which includes the worst economic downturn in the United States since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The paper also examines what factors drove Medicaid spending over the period, and concludes that overall spending growth from 2007 to 2011 was driven largely by the enrollment growth that resulted from many people losing…

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

    Report

    A survey of 1,204 adults on Americans' views on consumer protections and government regulation of managed care and the President's "Consumer Bill of Rights." The survey was conducted for the Foundation and Harvard University by Princeton Survey Research Associates. Additional questions were asked as part of a national omnibus telephone survey of 1,012 adults between January 8-12, 1998. TOPLINE Download CHARTPACK Download NEWS RELEASE Download

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

    Report

    A public education brochure describing basic facts about the current Medicare program and how it works. This fact sheet is included in a full packet of information as part of a joint public information project between Kaiser Family Foundation and League of Women Voters of public meetings held across the United States in October 1998 (#1427 - available in print). Report Report

  • Medicaid’s Disabled Population and Managed Care

    Other Post

    Medicaid's Disabled Population and Managed Care This fact sheet highlights the key facts about the Medicaid managed care programs that serve persons with disabilities. It describes the Medicaid disabled population and the role managed care plays in serving them. It also provides information on enrollment in managed care, program features, and issues such as quality assurance, rate setting, and benefits. A detailed report is also available (#2114) Medicaid's Disabled Population and Managed Care

  • Section 10: Plan Funding

    Report

    Exhibit 10.1 Exhibit 10.5 Exhibit 10.2 Exhibit 10.6 Exhibit 10.3 Exhibit 10.7 Exhibit 10.4   10 A self-funded plan is one in which the employer assumes direct responsibility for the costs of enrollees’ medical claims. Employers sponsoring self-funded plans typically contract with a third-party administrator or insurer to provide administrative services for the self-funded plan.

  • The Changing Medicaid Managed Care Market

    Report

    Trends in Commercial Plans' Participation This background paper analyzes the trends in commercial plan participation in the Medicaid market by using a database specifically designed for this purpose. It examines changes from mid-1996 to mid-1997 in the types of full-risk plans serving Medicaid Beneficiaries. It also looks at trends through mid-1998 for the 15 states with the largest number of Medicaid enrollees. Background Paper: : Trends in Commercial Plans' Particpation

  • Join the Debate: Health Issues in the 2000 Election

    Other Post

    Developed as part of a nonpartisan public education initiative of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation and the League of Women Voters Education Fund, this guide provides basic facts about five key health policy topics candidates are discussing in the 2000 election. These topics include health coverage for the uninsured, managed care and patients' rights, Medicare reform, prescription drug coverage for seniors, and long-term care. The guide frames each area and describes major proposals that…