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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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  • Nearly Half of Those Likely Eligible for DACA are Uninsured

    News Release

    Yesterday, the Biden Administration announced a plan to expand eligibility for Medicaid and ACA Marketplace health coverage to Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients. A KFF analysis finds 47% of individuals likely eligible for DACA are uninsured compared to 10% of U.S. born individuals in their age group.

  • Five Facts About Black Women’s Experiences in Health Care

    Issue Brief

    This brief examines Black women's experiences in health care, including unfair treatment by providers due to race and their health outcomes as a result of this treatment. The brief also explores the association between racially concordant providers and positive health care experiences among Black women.

  • Are Health Centers Facilitating Equitable Access to COVID-19 Vaccinations? A June 2021 Update.

    Issue Brief

    This analysis updates earlier work and examines the extent to which vaccination efforts through community health centers are reaching people of color using data from the federal government’s weekly Health Center COVID-19 Survey. We include data from the survey weeks of January 8 through May 21, 2021, finding that people of color made up the majority of people who received vaccinations at community health centers.

  • KFF Briefing Examines Progress and Remaining Challenges for the Health Care Systems in Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands Six Months After Hurricanes Irma and Maria

    News Release

    Six months after hurricanes Irma and Maria made landfall across Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, local officials described progress but also a long road to full recovery of the U.S. territories’ health care systems, economies and infrastructure during a public briefing Monday at the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Washington D.C. offices.

  • U.S. Virgin Islands: Fast Facts

    Fact Sheet

    This fact sheet presents demographic, economic, and health indicators of the U.S. Virgin Islands and briefly discusses some of the territory's short and long-term challenges facing the territory after Hurricanes Irma and Maria struck the island in September 2017.

  • Welfare Reform and Elderly Legal Immigrants – Report

    Report

    Welfare Reform and Elderly Legal Immigrants Prepared by: Robert B. Friedland and Veena Pankaj National Academy on Aging, Washington DC July 1997 Prepared for: The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation The Henry J.

  • 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.

  • 2011 Survey of DC Residents

    Poll Finding

    The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation partnered to conduct a survey examining the opinions of Washington, D.C., residents on a wide range of issues including health care.