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Racial Equity and Health Policy

Racism, Discrimination and Health

Changes in Children’s Vaccination Rates by Race and Ethnicity

Data show that children’s vaccination rates, including MMR and seasonal flu vaccines, have declined in recent years largely due to decreases in vaccinations among White and Asian children.

At the same time, and despite the declines among White and Asian children, Black and AIAN children remain least likely to have received recommended childhood vaccinations and the MMR vaccine specifically.

Disappearing Federal Data: Implications for Addressing Health Disparities

State Reported Efforts to Address Health Disparities: A 50 State Review

KFF Survey on Racism, Discrimination and Health: Views on Racism and Trust in Key U.S. Institutions

Designating English as the Official Language of the U.S. Could Affect Millions with LEP

Survey of Immigrants

KFF-New York Times Survey: Immigrants Report Rising Fear, Negative Economic and Health Impacts, and Changing Political Views During the First Year of President Trump’s Second Term

The 2025 Survey of Immigrants, a partnership between KFF and The New York Times, takes an in-depth look at the experiences of immigrants during the first year of President Trump’s second term, including their worries related to increased immigration enforcement, their health and economic wellbeing, and the political views and preferences of immigrant voters. The survey paints a portrait of families under strain — where fear of detention and economic instability are negatively impacting immigrants’ health and reshaping immigrant families’ daily lives and views of U.S. political parties.

Read the News Release | Explore The New York Times’ Reporting

Immigrants

Many Lawfully Present Immigrants Will Lose Health Coverage Due to the 2025 Tax and Budget Law

This policy watch outlines the groups of lawfully present immigrants that will lose access to federally funded health coverage due to new restrictions on eligibility in the 2025 tax and budget law.
It also highlights the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) estimates of the number of lawfully present immigrants who will become uninsured due to the provisions, as well as estimated federal savings that will result.
CBO estimates that the law’s restrictions on eligibility will result in 1.4 million lawfully present immigrants becoming uninsured and reduce federal spending by $131 billion by 2034.

Related: Key Facts on Health Coverage of Immigrants

States Have Enacted or Proposed a Range of Legislation That Will Affect Immigrants’ Access to State-Funded Health Coverage

Health Issues for Immigrants in Detention Centers

Policy Bars Many Immigrants from a Broad Range of Federal Health and Social Supports

Role of Immigrants in the Hospital Workforce

Interactive Timeline

How History Has Shaped Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities: A Timeline of Policies and Events

This interactive timeline explores how history has shaped racial and ethnic health disparities and the lasting effects that persist to this day.

The timeline describes major U.S. federal policies and events since the early 1800s that are linked to present-day health disparities. It also covers policies that impact health coverage and access to care, medicine, and social and economic policies that influence health as well as efforts to tackle inequalities.
the Essentials

  • Disparities in Health and Health Care: 5 Key Questions and Answers

    This brief provides an introduction to what health and health care disparities are, why it is important to address them, what the status of disparities is today, recent federal actions to address disparities, and key issues related to addressing disparities in the future.

  • Timeline: How History Has Shaped Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities

    This timeline offers a historical view of significant U.S. federal policies and events spanning the early 1800s to today that have influenced present-day health disparities.

  • Health Policy 101: Chapter on Race, Inequality and Health

    Addressing persistent racial and ethnic disparities in health and health care is important for improving the nation’s health and economic prosperity. KFF explains such disparities and the factors that drive them, examines the actions to address them, and outlines future considerations.

  • Key Data on Health and Health Care by Race and Ethnicity

    Racial and ethnic disparities in health and health care remain a persistent challenge in the United States. An updated KFF resource examines how people of color fare compared to White people across 64 measures of health, health care, and social determinants of health.

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  • Potential Effects of Public Charge Changes on Health Coverage for Citizen Children

    Issue Brief

    The Trump Administration is pursuing changes that, for the first time, would allow the federal government to take into account use of Medicaid, CHIP, subsidies for Marketplace coverage and other health, nutrition, and non-cash programs when making public charge determinations. These changes would likely lead to decreased participation in Medicaid, CHIP, Marketplace coverage, and other programs among legal immigrants and their citizen children, even though they would remain eligible.

  • Beyond Health Care: The Role of Social Determinants in Promoting Health and Health Equity

    Issue Brief

    Research demonstrates that improving population health and achieving health equity will require broad approaches that address social, economic, and environmental factors that influence health. This brief provides an overview of the broad factors that influence health and describes efforts to address them, including initiatives within Medicaid.

  • Atención de salud en Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes de los Estados Unidos: una revisión, a seis meses de las tormentas (Informe)

    Issue Brief

    Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes de los Estados Unidos (USVI) sufrieron daños significativos en su infraestructura y sistemas de salud a causa del impacto de los huracanes Irma y María en septiembre de 2017. Basándose en entrevistas con residentes, partes interesadas clave, y en informes públicos, este informe proporciona una visión general del estado de los esfuerzos de recuperación, a seis meses de las tormentas, con un enfoque en los sistemas de atención médica.

  • Rethinking the Use of Race in Medicine

    News Release

    The COVID-19 pandemic has shined a spotlight on racial disparities in health and health care, but disparities are hardly new. They have been driven by longstanding inequities within and beyond the health care system that are rooted in racism.

  • ‘In Focus with KFF’: Rethinking the Use of Race in Medicine

    Video

    KFF Vice President Samantha Artiga discusses how the medical system continues to use race in ways that may perpetuate disparities, including through provider and institutional bias, clinical guidelines, and medical education and training approaches.

  • Unwinding of the PHE: Maintaining Medicaid for People with Limited English Proficiency

    Issue Brief

    Provisions in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) require states to maintain continuous Medicaid enrollment for enrollees until the end of the month when the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) ends. When the continuous enrollment requirements end and states resume redeterminations and disenrollments, individuals with LEP may be at increased risk of losing Medicaid coverage or experiencing a gap in coverage due to barriers completing these processes, even if they remain eligible for coverage.

  • Disparities in Health and Health Care Among Black People

    Other

    This infographic looks at the persistent disparities in health and health care for Black people, which reflect structural and systematic inequities rooted in racism and discrimination. Although disparities in health coverage for Black people narrowed after passage of the Affordable Care Act, they continue to face higher rates of illness and death compared to White people.