Public Opinion

HeaLTH in the Midterms

Health Care in the 2026 Midterm Election

This dashboard focuses on KFF’s analysis of the role health care costs and other health policy issues played in voters’ decisions in the 2026 midterm elections, including in key Senate races. It examines the role of rising health costs on voters’ decisions, views on the Trump administration’s health care policies, and opinions on the government’s role in health care amid discussions of Medicare for All.

Abortion on the Ballot in 2026: Polling Insights from Voters in Four States

This dashboard provides KFF’s analysis of the role abortion played in voters’ decisions in the 2026 midterm elections, with a focus on four states with abortion-related ballot measures: Idaho, Missouri, Nevada, and Virginia. It examines support for each of the measures across groups, including additional questions in Missouri.

What Do the Midterm Election Results Mean for Health Care? 

Event Date:

On November 5 at Noon ET, join KFF for a special post-election discussion and live “What the Health” podcast taping. Part of the discussion will focus on public opinion survey data on how voters weighed health care as they went to the polls nationally and in the four states with abortion-related ballot initiatives. 

Midterm Voters Give Democrats a Big Advantage to Handle Health Care

Quick Insights

KFF’s analysis of the 2026 Voter Poll by SSRS shows midterm voters gave Democrats a 19-percentage-point advantage on which party is better able to handle health care. Voters also gave Democrats a narrow edge on handling the economy (43% vs. 37%), a reversal from 2024, when Trump had a 10-point advantage over Harris. "In an election focused on affordability, Democrats’ messaging on health care costs appears to have resonated with voters and may have contributed to the party’s gains."

KFF/AP Survey of RURAL VOTERS

Health Information and Trust

About Half of Parents Mistakenly Believe Spacing Out Vaccines Is Healthier for Children; Half Say No Strong Evidence to Support Such a Claim

KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust: Fall 2026 Update on Vaccine Views

The latest KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust finds about half of parents mistakenly believe spacing out vaccines is healthier for children, while confidence in many long-standing childhood vaccines is high across partisans. These findings take on new relevance following President Trump’s recent executive order calling for changes in U.S. childhood vaccine recommendations, including splitting the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine—currently given as a single combined shot—into three separate vaccines across multiple visits.

Dashboard: Polling on Health Information and Trust

Drawing on KFF’s poll findings, this interactive dashboard tracks the public’s trusted sources for health information, attitudes toward vaccines, and use of news, social media, and AI for health-related information.

Health Tracking PollS

Democrats Hold a Nearly 2-to-1 Advantage Over Republicans on Handling the Cost of Health Care

Health Care Issues in the Lead-Up to the 2026 Midterm Election 

In the lead up to the midterms, health care costs remained tied with gas as voters’ top midterm concerns. Two-thirds of U.S. adults also favored Medicare-for-all, a new high in KFF Polling, but support shifts when competing claims from critics and proponents are heard.

Most Democratic Voters Want To Hear Candidates Discuss Health Costs and Future of Health Programs; More Republicans Focused on Fraud

Public Views on Fraud in Health Programs

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.

Mifepristone and the Midterms

Amid an ongoing FDA re-review of mifepristone, awareness of the safety and prevalence of the abortion pill remains limited. This KFF poll also finds that the voters who say abortion policy is an important issue for 2026 midterm candidates to discuss are disproportionately Democrats.

MAHA and the Midterms

This KFF Health Tracking Poll finds that the cost of health care is a more prominent focus for Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) voters than issues like food and vaccine policy. Four in ten MAHA voters (42%) choose lowering health costs as the most important health priority, outranking other MAHA priorities.

the essentials

Health Tracking Poll

Our signature survey project provides up-to-date data on the public’s health care views, knowledge, and experiences.

Tracking the Public’s Views on the ACA

Tracking the Public’s Views on the ACA

This interactive tool tracks public opinion on the Affordable Care Act, from the inception of the law to the present, including trends based on party identification, income, age, gender, and race/ethnicity.

Health Information and Trust Tracking Poll

The Health Information and Trust Tracking Poll is part of KFF’s Health Information and Trust Initiative, which tracks health misinformation and analyzes its impact on the public.

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  • National Survey of Americans on AIDS/HIV

    Report

    A national random-sample survey of 1205 adults, 18 years and older, that examines Americans views on AIDS. The findings show that although Americans see growing progress in the fight against the disease, AIDS is still viewed as an urgent health problem for the nation and spending on prevention, research, and treatment is strongly supported. The survey also looks at public support for AIDS prevention efforts, including condoms in schools and needle exchange. The survey was…

  • Working Families at Risk: Coverage, Access, Cost and Worries

    Other Post

    Many Working Families Struggle To Get Needed Care And Pay Medical Bills Three-Quarters of the Currently or Recently Uninsured Are in Working Families Nearly Half of Uninsured Adults in Working Families Have Access or Bill Problems Embargoed for release until: 10:00 a.m., EST, Monday, December 8, 1997 For further Information contact: Chris Ferris (202)347-5270 or Mary Mahon (212)606-3853 Washington, D.C.-- Three in four American adults who do not have health insurance or who have experienced…

  • National Survey of Americans on AIDS/HIV: News Release

    Other Post

    Do Americans Think The AIDS Epidemic Is "Over"? Many See Progress In Fight Against The Disease, Yet Support Still Strong For Spending On Prevention And Treatment Though Still Number One, AIDS Now Tied with CancerAs Nation's Most Urgent Health Problem Embargoed For Release Until:10:00 am, ET, Thursday, December 4, 1997 Washington, DC -- As new drugs have become available to help people with AIDS/HIV livelonger, advocates have worried that the public will perceive the epidemicas…

  • National Survey of Americans on AIDS/HIV – Toplines/Survey

    Other Post

    1997 National Survey of Americans on AIDS/HIV Public Knowledge And Attitudes About AIDS/HIV : Survey II Princeton Survey Research Associates For The Kaiser Family Foundation Questionnaire and National Toplines December 4, 1997 Methodology The 1997 National Survey of Americans on AIDS/HIV was designed by staff of the Kaiser Family Foundation and conducted for the Family Foundation by Princeton Survey Research Associates. The survey was conducted by telephone with 1,205 adults (age 18 or older) nationwide…

  • Survey of Consumer Experiences in Managed Care – News Release

    Other Post

    New Survey Offers Insight Into Experiences of Managed Care Consumers Majority of Sacramento Managed Care Consumers Report No Difficulty with Their Plan, But Over a Quarter Had Problems For Immediate Release:Wednesday, November 19, 1997 Contacts:Heather Balas,Kaiser Family Foundation, (650) 854-9400 Katie Salvas,Sierra Health Foundation, (916) 922-4755 Magdalena Beltran-del Omo,The California Wellness Foundation, (818) 589-6600 Lauren Schaefer,Health Rights Hotline, (916) 551-2147 Medicaid Beneficiaries Report Highest Rate of Difficulty Sacramento, California -- Much national attention is currently…

  • Kaiser/Harvard National Survey of Americans’ Views on Managed Care

    Report

    A survey of Americans' attitudes toward managed care, including comparisons between consumers in managed care versus those in traditional fee-for-service plans. The survey was designed and analyzed by researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and Harvard University and conducted by telephone by Princeton Survey Research Associates with 1,204 adults nationwide between August 22 and September 23,1997. A sample of 500 adults in California and 500 adults in Massachusetts were also surveyed. The toplines for California…

  • Is There a Common Ground? Affiliations Between Catholic and Non-Catholic Health Care Providers and

    Other Post

    3. The Affiliation Process and the Role of Reproductive Health Services in the case studies The four case studies conducted for this project provide insight into the affiliation process between Catholic and non-Catholic health care providers and the role of reproductive health services in the process. The four successfully negotiated affiliations studied included an acquisition, a merger, a consolidation, and a 50/50 joint venture. (See Figure 1 for a summary of the contextual, organizational, and…