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Racial Equity and Health Policy

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

Racism, Discrimination and Health

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

Although President Trump's executive order designating English as the official language of the U.S. does not by itself trigger changes in services provided by agencies or organizations receiving federal funding, the policy is a departure from previous administrations’ approaches to language access for individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP).

The order will likely result in more limited availability of language access services for people with LEP, which are important for ensuring access to coverage and care, and for improving health outcomes. That may exacerbate disparities in health and health care, as people with LEP are more likely to be Hispanic, Asian, immigrants, and to have lower incomes. The order could also create confusion for providers, who remain subject to other laws and regulations that still require provision of language access services.

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

Impacts of Recent Federal and State Actions on Natural Disaster Preparedness and Response on Health

Survey of Immigrants

A Majority of Lawfully Present Immigrants Are Worried They or a Family Member Could Be Detained or Deported

A new KFF poll finds six in 10 lawfully present immigrants say they worry about the possibility that they or a family member could be detained or deported, contributing to feelings of increased stress, anxiety, and other health problems. A companion report based on focus groups provides a window into how likely undocumented immigrants and their families are faring in the current immigration policy landscape.
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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  • Loneliness and Social Support Networks: Findings from the KFF Survey of Racism, Discrimination and Health 

    Poll Finding

    The issues of loneliness and social isolation gained attention during the COVID-19 pandemic, and continue to be associated with poor mental and physical health conditions. One in six (15%) adults report feeling always or often lonely in the past year, with the highest shares among young adults ages 18-29. There is a strong relationship between feelings of loneliness, local support networks, and physical and mental health and well-being, but Black, Hispanic, and Asian adults are somewhat less likely to report strong local support networks compared to their White counterparts.

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

    Feature

    This analysis examines how people of color fare compared to White people across 64 measures of health, health care, and social determinants of health using the most recent data available from federal surveys and administrative sets as well as the 2023 KFF Survey on Racism, Discrimination, and Health.

  • Health Policy 101 Introduction

    Feature

    Health Policy 101 is a comprehensive guide covering fundamental aspects of U.S. health policy and programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, employer-sponsored insurance, the uninsured population, health care costs and affordability, women's health issues, and health care politics. It includes overviews of private health insurance regulation, racial and ethnic disparities, public health, international comparison of health systems, U.S. global health policy, and the federal role in health policy. The chapters can be downloaded in a PDF format for faculty and student use, and the information will be updated annually or as data and circumstances change.

  • Who is at Risk Amid the H5N1 Influenza Outbreak? Characteristics and Health Coverage of Animal Production Workers

    Issue Brief

    This analysis uses data on “animal production workers” from the 2022 American Community Survey to examine characteristics of workers who may be at risk for exposure to H5N1 avian influenza, which has been found in dairy cattle herds in nine U.S. states as of May 14, 2024. The analysis compares characteristics of these workers to all U.S. workers, to all workers in the H5N1-affected states, and draws out some implications. Among the findings are that animal production workers are more likely than workers overall to be Hispanic and noncitizen immigrants, as well as to be uninsured.

  • 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.

  • The Biden Administration’s Final Rule on Section 1557 Non-Discrimination Regulations Under the ACA

    Issue Brief

    This brief overviews the Biden Administration’s 2024 final rule implementing Section 1557 of the ACA, which is home to the law’s major nondiscrimination provisions. It provides a brief background on 1557 rulemaking and identifies key differences between this rule and the 2020 rule from the Trump Administration. It highlights two areas of growing interest impacted by the rule – nondiscrimination protections related to pregnancy and nondiscrimination protections for transgender people. Table 2 summarizes the major provisions of the new final rule with side-by-side comparison to the Obama (2016) and Trump (2020) administration rules.