Private Insurance

With federal agencies preparing to update parity regulations and Congress considering reforms, our new report explains existing parity requirements, including who they apply to and how their enforced, and highlights key policy issues raised by regulators and advocates that could be addressed in the future. Those issues include: Simplifying parity standards…

This brief discusses federal mental health parity protections — what they are, who they apply to, who enforces them and key policy issues as Congress and federal agencies evaluate improvements to the law to address gaps in mental health coverage and access.

As part of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Senate recently passed a three-year extension (through 2025) of enhanced subsidies for people buying their own health coverage on the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces. The enhanced subsidies increase the amount of financial help available to those already eligible and also newly expand subsidies to middle-income people, many of whom were previously priced out of coverage. Here’s what to know about the likely renewal of these subsidies:

This analysis finds that the ACA’s maximum out-of-pocket limit is likely to grow faster than wages and salaries, and is also expected to grow faster than the maximum out-of-pocket limit for Health Savings Account (HSA)-qualified health plans.

This analysis of marketplace insurers’ early rate filings in 13 states and the District of Columbia finds that they are seeking higher premium increases than in recent years, largely due to rising prices paid to hospitals, doctors and drug companies and increased use of services by enrollees.

A new analysis of marketplace insurers’ early rate filings in 13 states and the District of Columbia finds that they are seeking higher premium increases than in recent years, largely due to rising prices paid to hospitals, doctors and drug companies and increased use of services by enrollees. The median…

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.

Most (53%) adults with health care debt say they have received a medical or dental bill they thought contained an error at some point in the past 5 years, and most say a state consumer assistance program would be helpful to them.

The health care costs associated with pregnancy and childbirth average almost $19,000, including $2,854 paid out-of-pocket, a new KFF analysis of large employers’ insurance claims finds. Unlike other analyses that examine costs of specific pregnancy-related services, such as a vaginal or cesarean delivery, this new analysis compares three years of…

This analysis looks at the health care costs associated with pregnancy, including prenatal care, childbirth, and postpartum care. It finds women who give birth incur an extra $18,865 in total health care spending than other women. including $2,854 paid out-of-pocket.