Home Racial Equity and Health Policy Topics

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.

Latest News

More KFF Health News

Subscribe to KFF Emails

Choose which emails are best for you.
Sign up here

View the Latest: Racial Equity and Health Policy

Filter

List Grid

441 - 450 of 592 Results

  • Race, Ethnicity and Medical Care: Improving Access in a Diverse Society

    Report

    In an effort to address the racial inequities in health care that exist today, the Kaiser Family Foundation brought together leading public and private sector policymakers -- including health professionals, educators, civil rights leaders, and consumer organizations -- to review the evidence and race and medical care and discuss what can be done to address inequities in care.

  • Los Latinos y el VIH/SIDA

    Fact Sheet

    Latinos and HIV/AIDS (Spanish version) This fact sheet provides an overview of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States as it has affected Latinos, including information on the disproportionate impact of HIV/AIDS on the Latino community and a current case profile. It is available in English and Spanish.

  • Race, Ethnicity & Medical Care: A Survey of Public Perceptions and Experiences

    Poll Finding

    Toplines This is a copy of the results of a telephone survey conducted on a random, national sample of nearly 4,000 African American, Latino and white adults, 18 years of age and older. The questions were designed to reveal what each respondent believed about the impact of race and ethnicity on medical care today.

  • Welfare Reform and Elderly Legal Immigrants

    Other Post

    Economic Status of the Elderly Legal Immigrant conomic status, especially in old age, is often dependent on a lifetime of choices and opportunities. Retirement income is directly dependent on previous labor force experiences, savings, and thehealth and insurance coverage of family members.

  • Reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act: Background and Issues

    Report

    An analysis of issues affecting reauthorization of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act. The study examines the historical impact and effectiveness of the current law, its relevance in the context of the contemporary health environment and the issues pertinent to discussions about reauthorization of the Act.

  • Medicare and Minority Americans

    Fact Sheet

    As part of The Faces of Medicare, a collection of fact sheets profiling the characteristics and health needs of different groups of Medicare beneficiaries, provides key facts about Medicare's racial and ethnic minority population, who will account for one in three Americans 65 and older by 2025.

  • Pulling It Together: New Orleans Five Years After the Levees Broke

    Perspective

    President Obama's visit to New Orleans on August 29, five years after Hurricane Katrina and the levee failures nearly destroyed the city, presented an opportunity for him to deliver a message on behalf of us all: The country still cares. It was a timely message.