Community Health Centers Have Experienced Increased Demand for Social Services During the Pandemic and Have Added Capacity for Mental Health June 3, 2022 News Release Community health centers have seen a rise in patients seeking non-medical services such as housing, food, nutrition, and transportation during the pandemic and have added new mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) services in response to growing need, according to a new KFF survey. Over half of the health…
Private Insurers Expect to Pay $1 Billion in Rebates to Consumers This Year for Setting Premiums Too High Relative to Medical Costs June 1, 2022 News Release Private insurance companies are expecting to pay out $1 billion in rebates to consumers this fall under an Affordable Care Act provision that requires insurers to spend the bulk of customers’ premium payments on care, a new KFF analysis finds. Rebates are based on insurers’ experiences over the previous three…
Misinformation About COVID-19 Vaccines and Pregnancy is Widespread, Including Among Women Who are Pregnant or Planning to Get Pregnant May 27, 2022 News Release Misinformation and confusion about the COVID-19 vaccines and pregnancy remains widespread, with most people – including women who are pregnant or trying to get pregnant – either believing or being uncertain about at least one of three false claims they’ve heard, a new KFF COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor shows. Among women…
4 Key Q&As About the Impact of Climate Change on Health Equity May 24, 2022 News Release While climate change effects ripple across the world and all populations, it is poised to disproportionately affect people of color, low-income communities, immigrants, and other high-need groups. Many of these groups have historically been exposed to climate hazards due to government policies and discriminatory practices that leave them more vulnerable…
Many States Look to Strengthen Medicaid Coverage for Maternal Health in FY2022, According to New KFF Report May 19, 2022 News Release Medicaid funds more than four in ten births in the United States and more than half in several states. A new KFF report of results from a survey of 41 states and DC finds that on the whole, states offer broad coverage for basic pregnancy-related services. Most states also reported…
Some States Are Strengthening Abortion Access and Protections for Clinicians and Out-of-State Residents Seeking Abortions May 16, 2022 News Release If the Supreme Court overturns Roe v Wade, the landmark decision that established the right to abortion, then individual states can regulate abortion without any federal requirement to protect abortion access. While about half of the states in the U.S. will move to either ban or highly restrict abortion access…
COVID-19 Vaccination Rates Among Nursing Home Staff Have Risen by 25 Percentage Points Since the Biden Administration Announced a Vaccination Mandate for Health Care Workers Last Year May 16, 2022 News Release In a new analysis, KFF researchers find that COVID-19 vaccination rates among nursing home staff increased by 25 percentage points nationally (63% to 88%) from when the Biden administration announced the vaccine mandate for health care workers in August 2021 to after vaccination deadlines passed in March 2022. Researchers analyzed…
Analysis: The Vast Majority of Physicians Accept New Patients, Including Patients With Medicare and Private Insurance May 12, 2022 News Release Despite occasional anecdotal reports of people having trouble finding a doctor who takes their insurance, KFF researchers find in a new analysis that the vast majority of non-pediatric office-based physicians accept new Medicare patients, as well as new private insurance patients. Eighty-nine percent of such physicians accepted new Medicare patients…
1 in 5 Parents of Children Under 5 Intend to Get Them a COVID-19 Vaccine Right Away Once Eligible; Most Say Approval Delays Have Not Shaken Their Confidence in Vaccine’s Safety and Effectiveness May 4, 2022 News Release About a Third of the Public Thinks the Nation is Facing a New COVID-19 Wave as Cases Rise About a fifth (18%) of parents with children under age 5 say they intend to get their child vaccinated “right away” once federal regulators authorize its use for their child’s age group,…
Medicaid Work Requirements: What Happened under the Trump and Biden Administrations? May 3, 2022 News Release In a new brief, KFF analysts explain and summarize the recent history of efforts to make work requirements a condition of eligibility for Medicaid in some states. Following years of administrative, political, and legal activity across two presidential administrations, recent Supreme Court action and skepticism about work requirements by the…