Health Costs

In this column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman explores the nation’s twin health cost crises of affordability, especially for people who are sick and need a lot of health care, and national health spending, and why the solutions often work at cross purposes.

In this column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman explores the potential for some health care issues—including abortion, drug costs and other affordability challenges—to influence enough voters in swing states to make a difference in this year’s presidential election.

In his Beyond the Data column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman discusses how how family health coverage is no longer affordable for workers at small employers, contributing to the health cost crisis affecting the American people.

In his latest column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman describes how Vice President Harris has reframed health as a pocketbook economic issue, which aligns with voters’ concern about health care costs.

This analysis of insurers’ preliminary rate filings shows that ACA Marketplace insurers are requesting a median premium increase of 7% for 2025, similar to the 6% premium increase filed for 2024. Insurers cite growing health care prices – particularly for hospital care – as a key driver of premium growth in 2025.

This chart collection presents analysis of data from recent Annual Economic and Social Supplements (ASEC) of the Current Population Survey (CPS) to examine who among non-elderly people has employer-sponsored insurance and which workers are offered and eligible for coverage at their current jobs.

Among the 167 million people with employer-sponsored insurance in 2022, 3.4 million used at least one of the first 10 drugs identified for Medicare price negotiations, according to a new analysis. The most used drug for people with employer-sponsored health insurance was Jardiance, a drug used to treat diabetes and…

Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace plans rarely cover GLP-1 drugs approved solely for obesity treatment, according to a an analysis of 2024 federal plan data. Wegovy, a drug that is approved for weight loss, is covered by just 1% of Marketplace prescription drug plans, compared to 82% of Marketplace prescription…

In his latest column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman describes the role of health care in the new presidential election with Vice President Harris facing former President Donald Trump. He discusses how health will likely be a consequential factor in the campaign, with abortion and reproductive rights, along with health care costs, taking center stage.

In this column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman explores why the public’s concerns about out-of-pocket health costs make health care affordability the health policy issue most likely to resonate with voters across the political spectrum.