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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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  • Addressing the Justice-Involved Population in Coronavirus Response Efforts

    Issue Brief

    Addressing health care needs of people moving into and out of the criminal justice system and staff who work them is an important component of coronavirus response efforts and protecting and promoting public health within the communities in which correctional facilities are located. This brief provides data on spread of coronavirus within correctional facilities, discusses the health risks for the justice-involved population and the staff who work with them, identifies the role Medicaid can play…

  • COVID-19 Crisis Will Likely Disproportionately Affect the Health and Finances of Communities of Color

    News Release

    The COVID-19 outbreak will likely disproportionately affect communities of color in both their health and their pocketbooks, compounding longstanding racial disparities in health and economic conditions, according to a new KFF analysis. While comprehensive data about how the COVID-19 crisis is unfolding are not yet available, early data from some areas suggest groups of color are experiencing disproportionate health and economic impacts. As of April 6, to cite a few examples: In Illinois, groups of…

  • Addressing Health and Social Needs of Immigrant Families: Lessons from Local Communities

    Issue Brief

    This brief presents findings from discussions with service providers across sectors (including health, legal, and education), local officials, and parents in immigrant families in the San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego about issues facing immigrant families and providers in the current environment, how the local communities have responded to growing needs, and key priorities and opportunities identified for serving immigrant communities.

  • President Trump’s Proclamation Suspending Entry for Immigrants without Health Coverage

    Fact Sheet

    On October 4, 2019, President Trump released a proclamation suspending entry of immigrants into the United States unless they provide proof of health insurance within 30 days of entry or have financial resources to pay for reasonably foreseeable health insurance costs. The proclamation indicates that the suspension is necessary to protect the health care system and taxpayers from uncompensated care costs. This brief provides an overview of the proclamation and data on health coverage and…

  • Nearly 8 in 10 Immigrants Who Entered the U.S. Without Legal Permanent Resident Status Have At Least One Characteristic That Could Count Against Them under the New “Public Charge” Rule

    News Release

    Seventy-nine percent of noncitizen residents who originally entered the United States without legal permanent resident status have at least one characteristic that could count against them under the Trump Administration’s new “public charge” rule, according to an updated KFF analysis. Such characteristics – including having an income below 125 percent of the federal poverty level or lacking a high school diploma or private health insurance -- could make it harder for immigrants to obtain admission…