This data note reviews our recent polling data that finds that Americans struggle to afford many aspects of health care, including disproportionate shares of uninsured adults, Black and Hispanic adults and those with lower incomes.
Category: health costs
Could Consumer Assistance be Helpful to People Facing Medical Debt?
Most (53%) adults with health care debt say they have received a medical or dental bill they thought contained an error at some point in the past 5 years, and most say a state consumer assistance program would be helpful to them.
Women who Give Birth Incur Nearly $19,000 in Additional Health Costs, Including $2,854 More that They Pay Out of Pocket
The health care costs associated with pregnancy and childbirth average almost $19,000, including $2,854 paid out-of-pocket, a new KFF analysis of large employers’ insurance claims finds. Unlike other analyses that examine costs of specific pregnancy-re…
Health Costs Associated with Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Postpartum Care
This analysis looks at the health care costs associated with pregnancy, including prenatal care, childbirth, and postpartum care. It finds women who give birth incur an extra $18,865 in total health care spending than other women. including $2,854 pa…
KFF’s Kaiser Health News and NPR Launch Diagnosis: Debt, a Yearlong Reporting Partnership Exploring the Scale, Impact, and Causes of the Health Care Debt Crisis in America
KFF’s Kaiser Health News (KHN) and NPR today launched a yearlong investigative project that explores the scale, impact, and causes of the health care debt crisis in the United States. Drawing upon a special KFF poll conducted for the project, original …
Health Care Debt In The U.S.: The Broad Consequences Of Medical And Dental Bills
The KFF Health Care Debt Survey finds that four in ten adults have some form of health care debt, with most citing one-time or short-term medical expenses as the contributor. Many of those with health care debt report making personal sacrifices and end…
Overall inflation has not yet flowed through to the health sector
Prices for medical services typically rise more quickly than the broader economy, but the reverse has been true recently as general inflation rose rapidly. The recent trend reflects the unusually high inflation affecting other parts of the economy, whi…
Data Note: 2022 Medical Loss Ratio Rebates
We find that insurers estimate they will issue a total of about $1 billion in Medical Loss Ratio (MLR) rebates this year across all commercial markets under a provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that limits the share of premiums that insurers c…
Private Insurers Expect to Pay $1 Billion in Rebates to Consumers This Year for Setting Premiums Too High Relative to Medical Costs
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 …
Price Regulation, Global Budgets, and Spending Targets: A Road Map to Reduce Health Care Spending, and Improve Affordability
We review several policy options to constrain health care spending, primarily by putting downward pressure on provider prices, including price regulation, global budgets, and spending growth targets.
