Home Health Costs Topics

Health Costs

COSTS and Affordability

KFF Health Tracking Poll: Health Care Costs and the Midterms

This KFF poll finds that health care costs continue to top the public’s list of affordability worries, even as concerns about gas prices have risen in recent weeks, with two-thirds of the public expressing worry over affording health care costs. Majorities say health costs will influence their vote this election. Voters favor Democrats on the issue, while Republicans hold an advantage on addressing fraud and abuse.

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.

Latest News

No Posts to Show

More KFF Health News

View the Latest: Health Costs

Filter

List Grid

771 - 780 of 1,577 Results

  • New Evidence Health Spending Is Growing Faster Again

    From Drew Altman

    In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman discusses new Census Department survey data showing higher health spending growth over the last four economic quarters, and raises the question: is the health spending slowdown over?

  • Poll Finds Nearly Three Quarters of Americans Say Prescription Drug Costs Are Unreasonable, and Most Blame Drug Makers Rather Than Insurers for the Problem

    News Release

    If Supreme Court's King v. Burwell Decision Restricts Insurance Subsidies to Certain States, Most Say Congress Should Act to Ensure Residents of All States are Eligible, and a Majority in Potentially Affected States say Their State Should Act Public's Views on Affordable Care Act Are Divided and Unchanged: 42% Unfavorable and 39% Favorable Nearly three quarters (73%) of the public view prescription drug costs as unreasonable, and far more blame pharmaceutical companies more than insurers…

  • New Animated Video Provides an Engaging Look at the Cost and Quality of the Nation’s Health System

    News Release

    A new animated video on the Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker provides an engaging “check-up” of the nation’s health system, addressing questions of whether it’s getting better or worse and how it compares to other countries. Health of the Healthcare System, produced by the Kaiser Family Foundation, draws on the most up-to-date, reliable data to offer an easy-to-understand portrait of cost, quality and access to health care in the United States. Julie Rovner, a veteran health reporter…

  • Prescription Drugs’ Sizable Share of Health Spending

    From Drew Altman

    In this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman explains why prescription drug spending may be a larger share of health spending than most people think, depending on how you look at it.

  • Puerto Rico: Fast Facts

    Fact Sheet

    Puerto Rico: Fast Facts provides a quick snapshot of the island's demographic, health, and economic characteristics. It also provides some information on federal Medicaid rules, infrastructure, and fiscal challenges ahead.

  • California Health Insurance Act (SB2) Data Update

    Report

    On October 5, 2003, Governor Gray Davis signed into law the California Health Insurance Act of 2003 (also referred to as SB2). This law would require employers with 200 or more workers to either pay into a fund that will provide coverage to their workers or to pay for 80% of the premium costs for their workers and dependents (effective January 1, 2006). Medium-sized employers (between 50 and 199 workers) would be required either to…

  • Retiree Health Benefits in 2003: Employer Survey

    Report

    This survey, conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Hewitt Associates between June and September 2003 provides detailed information on retiree health programs offered by large private-sector employers. The data in this survey reflect the responses of 408 large firms (private-sector employers with 1,000 or more workers) and provides information on eligibility, benefits, premiums, and total cost in 2003, and offers insights as to what changes employers say they are likely to make in the…

  • Section 5: Market Shares of Health Plans

    Report

    The distribution of enrollment among types of health plans has remained fairly constant over the past several years. The majority of covered workers are enrolled in PPO plans (55%), followed by HMO plans (25%) (Exhibit 5.1). Although annual changes in plan enrollment have been moderate, enrollment in PPO plans has grown by nine percentage points since 2001. More than half of covered workers (55%) are enrolled in PPO plans, an increase from 46% in 2001…

  • Section 11: Retiree Health Benefits

    Report

    Exhibit 11.1 Exhibit 11.4 Exhibit 11.2 Exhibit 11.5 Exhibit 11.3   11 Twenty-eight percent of Medicare beneficiaries receive prescription drug coverage from an employer, a far higher number than receive coverage through a Medicare HMO (15%), Medigap (7%) or Medicaid (10%). Laschober et. al., Health Affairs, February 2002.

  • Health Care Costs Survey

    Poll Finding

    This comprehensive survey from USA Today, the Kaiser Family Foundation, and the Harvard School of Public Health examines how Americans are being affected by health care costs. The survey includes information on the barriers health care costs pose to obtaining medical care and the alternative measures people take to lower their medical and prescription drug bills. The is based on a nationally representative sample of 1,531 adults ages 18 years and older, conducted between April…