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Racial Equity and Health Policy

Racism, Discrimination and Health

Proposed Changes in the Census Could Impact Efforts to Address Health Disparities

The proposed changes would effectively prohibit the counting of many noncitizen immigrants, including undocumented immigrants and some lawfully present immigrants, and ban the inclusion of questions on race and ethnicity from the decennial census.

Health Coverage by Race and Ethnicity, 2010-2024

The Growing Use of Artificial Intelligence in Health Care and Implications for Disparities

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

Overview of Health Coverage and Care for Individuals with Limited English Proficiency

the Essentials

  • How Experiencing Racial Discrimination Impacts Health

    This brief highlights research examining mechanisms underlying health outcomes linked to self-reported experiences of racial discrimination, including biological changes, chronic stress, mental health, substance use, pregnancy-related outcomes, and sleep.

  • 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.
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.

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

Recent State Actions Related to Immigrants’ Access to Services and Immigration Enforcement

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

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  • Voces de Puerto Rico: Reflexiones Dos Meses Después de María (Informe)

    Issue Brief

    Dos meses después que el huracán María tocara tierra, la Kaiser Family Foundation viajó a Puerto Rico. Este informe presenta los resultados de grupos focales y entrevistas individuales con 40 personas de 10 diferentes regiones de la isla afectadas por la tormenta.

  • 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.

  • Language Barriers in Health Care: Findings from the KFF Survey on Racism, Discrimination, and Health

    Poll Finding

    In the U.S., 26 million people have limited English proficiency, representing about 8% of people ages 5 and older. Those with limited English proficiency report worse overall health status than those who are English proficient, but data suggests that having access to providers who speak their preferred language may help these disparities and can improve health care experiences.

  • Hurricane Harvey: The Experiences of Immigrants Living in the Texas Gulf Coast

    Report

    In order to better understand the particular needs of immigrants both in recovering from and preparing for future storms, this analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Episcopal Health Foundation highlights the views and experiences of foreign-born residents who were living in 24 coastal Texas counties hard-hit by Hurricane Harvey. Specifically, the brief explores the financial circumstances of immigrants following the storm, as well as their health care access, social support, and top priorities…

  • Wide Variations in Flu Vaccination Rates Across States Highlight Challenges as State and Local Authorities Plan to Distribute a COVID-19 Vaccine

    News Release

    When a COVID-19 vaccine becomes available, all or most people living in the country will need to get vaccinated in order to maximize its benefits and provide adequate immunity nationwide. That could present a daunting challenge for state and local health officials, as a new KFF analysis shows vaccination rates for the annual flu vaccine vary widely across states as well as by race and ethnicity, age, and other demographic characteristics. The flu vaccine provides…

  • KFF Launches New COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor to Track the Public’s Confidence in the Vaccine and Experiences for the Duration of the Pandemic

    News Release

    Republicans and Black Americans are More Likely to Be Hesitant but Even Among These Groups Reasons Vary KFF has launched a new COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor to dive deeply into the public’s views about the vaccine and experiences getting it for as long as the pandemic lasts. First results released today show that Americans’ enthusiasm for getting a COVID-19 vaccination varies substantially across groups, with Republicans and Black Americans among those most hesitant. Overall, 71% of…

  • Among Non-Elderly Adults, Low-Income, American Indian/Alaska Native and Black Adults Have Higher Risk of Developing Serious Illness if Infected With Coronavirus

    News Release

    Among non-elderly adults, American Indian/Alaska Native and Black adults are more likely than Whites to be at higher risk of serious illness if infected with the new coronavirus -- chiefly due to a higher prevalence of underlying health conditions and longstanding disparities in health care and other socio-economic factors, according to a new KFF analysis. People in lower-income households are also at higher risk. The analysis finds that the share of non-elderly adults at higher…

  • The U.S.-Mexico Border Region Faced a Range of Health Challenges Long Before the Current Immigration Surge

    News Release

    With intense immigration activity at the U.S.-Mexico border this year and attention focused on the plight of newly arriving migrants, a new KFF analysis finds communities along the border faced an array of socioeconomic challenges and weak health infrastructures well before this year’s surge. Texas – which has the most counties along the border and is the only border state that has not expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act – stands out as facing…

  • Abismo en el financiamiento de Medicaid: Implicaciones para los sistemas de atención de salud de Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes de los EE.UU.

    Issue Brief

    Este resumen ofrece una descripción general del estado de los sistemas de atención médica y los programas de Medicaid en Puerto Rico y las Islas Vírgenes de los EE.UU. (USVI) aproximadamente un año y medio después que los huracanes Irma y María azotaran las islas, en septiembre de 2017. Después de las tormentas, los programas de Medicaid de los territorios han servido como recursos importantes para atender las necesidades de atención médica de los residentes,…