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The January 2015 Kaiser Health Policy News Index finds fewer than 3 in 10 Americans report paying attention to recent health policy news stories; considerably less than the shares who report following national and international news stories such as tension between the police and the mayor in New York City and the Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris.

The public paid more attention to news coverage of the measles outbreak in the U.S. and the resulting debate on whether vaccinations should be required for all kids than any other news story included in this month’s Kaiser Health Policy News Index. Nearly half correctly identified that the number of confirmed measles cases in the U.S. since the outbreak began late last year is closer to 100, and most say they are not too or not at all worried about the measles outbreak.

Those Following Measles Story More Likely To Say They Worry About the Disease The public paid more attention to news coverage of the measles outbreak in the U.S. and the resulting debate on whether vaccinations should be required for all kids than any other news story included in this month’s…

The health policy stories included in this month’s Kaiser Health Policy News Index were followed closely by about 4 in 10 Americans. Of the stories asked about this month, the one that garnered the most attention was coverage of the white police officer charged with the murder of an unarmed black man in South Carolina. Over half report closely following other stories, including the Germanwings plane crash in the French Alps, a new religious freedom law in Indiana that allows business owners to refuse service to gay customers, negotiations over Iran’s Nuclear Program, and a terrorist attack by Islamic militants at a university in Kenya. The only non-health story to receive less attention than the health stories this month was coverage of the Congressional Republican budget proposals, followed closely by just over a third of the public.

Following Flint Water Crisis, Nearly Half Worry about Their Community’s Water Supply Almost Half of Public is Concerned about a Widespread Zika Outbreak in U.S. This Year The latest Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds the public as divided as the remaining presidential candidates over their vision for the future of…

In his latest column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman analyzes the Kaiser Health Policy News Index to determine which health stories in the news have broken through to the public the most in the last year. One conclusion: It wasn’t the Affordable Care Act.

The Kaiser Health Policy News Index is designed to help journalists and policymakers understand which health policy-related news stories Americans are paying attention to, and what the public understands about health policy issues covered in the news. This month’s index looks at the public’s attention to the ongoing rollout of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), as well as other news stories including the release of a major government study on health care costs.

The Kaiser Health Policy News Index is designed to help journalists and policymakers understand which health policy-related news stories Americans are paying attention to, and what the public understands about health policy issues covered in the news. This month’s Index finds that the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was the most-closely followed health policy news story this month, ranking behind news of the U.S. economy. The survey also finds that the news media is by far the public’s top source of information on the ACA, and the public believes media coverage of the law has focused more on politics and controversies than the impact on people.

The Kaiser Health Policy News Index is designed to help journalists and policymakers understand which health policy-related news stories Americans are paying attention to, and what the public understands about health policy issues covered in the news. This month’s Index finds that the public followed the missing Malaysia Airlines flight and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia more closely than news about ACA enrollment. Additionally, many Americans remain unaware of the status of Medicaid expansion in their own states.

The Kaiser Health Policy News Index is designed to help journalists and policymakers understand which health policy-related news stories Americans are paying attention to, and what the public understands about health policy issues covered in the news. This month’s Index finds that the public followed the missing Malaysia Airlines flight, the shooting at the Fort Hood army post, and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, more closely than any health policy news stories. Among health policy news, the most closely-followed story was coverage of how many people have enrolled in health insurance options under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which just over half the public reports following “very” or “fairly” closely.