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“...the search for a single top issue through polling questions — whether it’s health costs, or gas prices, or the cost of food — is artificial. People worry about and experience these costs together. There is no top issue, unless that issue is the catchall, ‘cost of living.’” — Drew Altman, KFF Founding President and CEO

Are Health Care Costs THE Top Issue for Voters?

In a new column, Dr. Drew Altman, Founding President and CEO, analyzes the polling on health costs as a voting issue and concludes that there is no one top voting issue. He writes: “I have come to the conclusion that the search for a single top issue through polling questions—whether it’s health costs, or gas prices, or the cost of food—is artificial. People worry about and experience these costs together. There is no top issue, unless that issue is the catchall, “cost of living.”

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How Unaffordable is Health Care and What Can We Do About It?

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On Tuesday, July 21, three experts joined Health Wonk Shop series moderator Larry Levitt in an hour-long discussion of health care affordability. During the discussion, panelists considered affordability from a variety of perspectives, including how to define affordability and the question of affordability for whom, how to measure it, and what can be done to address affordability and the underlying cost of health care.

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  • In Preliminary Rate Filings, ACA Marketplace Insurers Largely Propose Double-Digit Premium Increase For 2027, Following a Steep Climb This Year 

    News Release

    ACA Marketplace insurers are proposing a median premium increase of 14% for 2027— indicating a likely second consecutive year of double-digit increases, according to a new analysis of preliminary rate filings in 16 states and DC. If these increases hold, typical premiums for insurers participating in the ACA Marketplaces would jump by more than one-third between 2025 and 2027.

  • What Are the Recent Trends in Employer-Based Health Coverage?

    Issue Brief

    Employer-sponsored health insurance is the largest source of health coverage for people under 65, covering 165.6 million people in March 2025. This analysis examines who among people under 65 have employer coverage and which workers are offered and eligible for coverage at their jobs, using the Annual Economic and Social (March) Supplements of the Current Population Survey.

  • How Unaffordable is Health Care? 

    Video

    Health care affordability is a top issue for many people. Why and how did care get so expensive? In this three-part video series, KFF experts look at the rising cost of health care in the U.S. from the macro level to the issues facing everyday Americans. Drawing on KFF policy analysis and polling, the videos examine the underlying drivers of health care spending, the true cost of employer sponsored health insurance and whether the Affordable…

  • Eight Trends Shaping 2026 Health Care Costs

    Other Post

    A new Peterson-KFF policy explainer lays out the health care trends shaping the 2026 policy debates, including rising premiums, spending on prescription drugs, health care price transparency and consolidation, artificial intelligence in health care, Medicaid funding cuts and other key program changes.

  • How Unaffordable is Health Care?

    Perspective

    In his latest JAMA Forum column, KFF’s Larry Levitt explores how unaffordable health care is in the U.S. in the context of the debate over extending enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits and an upcoming election where affordability will likely be front and center.

  • A Preview of the Role Health Care May Play in the 2026 Election

    Issue Brief

    Ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, this KFF issue brief examines the role health care has played in previous elections and what that may suggest about its potential role in 2026. KFF polls have consistently found that the cost of health care is an important part of voters’ economic concerns.

  • Cost Concerns and Coverage Changes: A Follow-Up Survey of ACA Marketplace Enrollees

    Poll Finding

    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 that these 2025 Marketplace enrollees are experiencing following the expiration of the enhanced premium tax credits. The survey 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.

  • Americans’ Challenges with Health Care Costs

    Issue Brief

    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.

  • KFF Health Tracking Poll: Public Views on Fraud in Government Health Programs

    Poll Finding

    As the 2026 midterms approach, health care costs remain voters' top health priority, but fraud in government health programs, including Medicaid and Medicare, is resonating with Republican voters, 55% of whom say it's extremely important for candidates to address. Most voters say there is at least “some” fraud in government health programs, but larger shares say there is fraud in the tax system, defense, and foreign aid, while the smallest share sees fraud in the…

  • What We Know So Far About 2026 ACA Marketplace Enrollment, Premiums, and Deductibles

    Issue Brief

    This analysis examines early indicators of how the expiration of enhanced premium tax credits has affected effectuated enrollment levels (i.e., enrollment among people who have paid their premiums), plan selections, and out-of-pocket costs in 2026, drawing on plan selection and effectuated enrollment data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and state-based Marketplace (SBM) Open Enrollment reports, as well as KFF survey data and individual market enrollment estimates from Wakely Consulting Group.