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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  • Hospital Charity Care: How It Works and Why It Matters

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief examines the role that hospital charity care programs play in helping patients who are unable to afford their care. It describes how hospital charity care programs work, the amount of charity care that hospitals provide, relevant federal and state regulation, the role of Medicare and Medicaid in helping hospitals afford charity care expenses, and policy proposals related to charity care programs.

  • Nine Changes to Watch in ACA Open Enrollment 2023

    Policy Watch

    The 2023 Affordable Care Act (ACA) Open Enrollment period will run from November 1, 2022 to January 15, 2023 in most states, longer in some state-based marketplaces. This policy watch examines nine changes that may affect what enrollees pay for coverage, the size of tax credits for those eligible, and other changes that could affect enrollees' experiences.

  • 2023 Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator

    Interactive

    The Health Insurance Marketplace Calculator, updated with 2023 premium data, provides estimates of health insurance premiums and subsidies for people purchasing insurance on their own in health insurance exchanges (or “Marketplaces”) created by the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

  • 2022 Employer Health Benefits Chart Pack

    Feature

    This slideshow captures key data from the 2022 KFF Employer Health Benefits Survey survey, providing a detailed look at trends in employer-sponsored health coverage, including premiums, employee contributions, cost-sharing provisions, offer rates, wellness programs, and employer practices.

  • 2022 Employer Health Benefits Survey

    Report

    This annual survey of employers provides a detailed look at trends in employer-sponsored health coverage, including premiums, worker contributions, cost-sharing provisions, offer rates, and more. This year’s report also looks at how employers are addressing a growing need for mental health services.

  • Health Care Inflation in the U.S.

    Event Date:
    Event

    The pressures of inflation are far reaching, affecting providers, insurers, government programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, and, ultimately, the American people. Over the coming months, health care providers and insurers will wrap up pricing negotiations and set premiums for the next year. Amid these negotiations, there remain big questions as to how economic policy and legislation such as the Inflation Reduction Act will influence pricing and payment for insurance and health care, including prescription drugs, and who will bear the brunt of rising costs.