Health Costs

Affordable care act

Poll: Health Care Costs, Expiring ACA Tax Credits, and the 2026 Midterms

Heading into this midterm election year, the cost of health care tops the public’s economic anxieties, and more than 4 in 10 voters say the issue will have a major impact on their vote, a new KFF Health Tracking poll finds. Two thirds of public say Congress "did the wrong thing" by not extending ACA enhanced tax credits, but Republicans largely say Congress “did the right thing.”

Affordability and Spending

Our Darwinian Approach to Health Care Costs

Our Darwinian Approach to Health Care Costs

In his latest column, President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman presents his Venn diagram of health care cost problems and shows how, in our fragmented health system, reducing one health cost problem often makes another worse. "...Reducing health care costs has become a Darwinian game; everyone wants to reduce health care costs and spending – their own, often at the expense of someone else."

KEY RESOURCES
  • Health Policy 101: Costs and Affordability

    This Health Policy 101 chapter explores trends in health care costs in the U.S. and the factors that contribute to this spending. It also examines how health care spending varies and the impact on affordability and people's overall financial vulnerability.  


  • Americans’ Challenges with Health Care Costs

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

  • National Health Spending Explorer

    This interactive Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker tool allows users to examine five decades worth of data on health expenditures by federal and local governments, private insurers, and individuals.

  • Polling on Prescription Drugs and Their Prices

    This chart collection draws on recent KFF poll findings to provide an in-depth look at the public’s attitudes toward prescription drugs and their prices. Results include Americans’ opinions on drug affordability, pharmaceutical companies, and various potential measures that could lower prices.

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161 - 170 of 1,549 Results

  • Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: April 2015

    Feature

    This month’s Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds public opinion of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) continues to be almost evenly split The poll also asks about health care priorities for the President and Congress, and the concern that comes out on top for Democrats, Republicans and independents alike is making sure that high-cost drugs for chronic conditions are affordable to those who need them. Other than high-cost prescription drugs, Democrats, Republicans and independents have different ideas of their top priorities in health care. The poll also assesses Americans' use of comparative price and quality information about doctors, hospitals and health plans.

  • Why Low Growth in Health Costs Still Stings

    News Release

    In his latest column for The Wall Street Journal's Think Tank, Drew Altman shows how rising deductibles have eclipsed growth in wages and discusses why that may be the main reason people think costs have been continuing to rise rapidly when instead, growth has slowed. All previous columns by Drew Altman are available online.

  • This is an image of text that are an excerpt of Larry Levitt's quick take that reads: " Once Republicans in Congress get specific about Medicaid cuts, it will become more tangible and clearer who will be affected. Changes to the status quo in health care rarely get more popular when the details get filled in. We saw that with the Clinton health plan in the 1990s, with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) when it initially passed, and with the 2017 effort to repeal the ACA."

    The Rubber is About to Hit the Road on Medicaid Cuts

    Quick Take

    Once Republicans in Congress get specific about Medicaid cuts, it will become more tangible and clearer who will be affected. Changes to the status quo in health care rarely get more popular when the details get filled in.

  • Quote image from Jared Ortaliza's quick take reads, "Setting an income cap may not have much effect on the federal budget, but it could have a big effect on some household budgets, particularly for older enrollees."

    What an Income Cap Could Mean for ACA Enrollees and the Federal Budget

    Quick Take

    Some members of Congress are considering an income cap on the ACA enhanced premium tax credits to lower federal costs. Depending on the income cutoff chosen, a cap may have little effect on the federal budget and a big effect on some households’ budgets, particularly for older enrollees.

  • How an ACA Premium Spike Will Affect Family Budgets, and Voters

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, President and CEO Dr. Drew Altman shows how spiking premiums, which may come if the enhanced ACA tax credits are not extended, will hit people in the context of their family budgets, alongside rising costs for food, housing and utilities. For some families, their new health care costs could far exceed what they pay for food, affecting their economic security and potentially their vote.

  • The Role Health PLAYED in the Election

    From Drew Altman

    In his latest column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman provides an early post-mortem on the role health played in the election, discussing the many ways it did play a role in the campaign — even if not a decisive one.