We consulted with the writers of The Pitt on this storyline. The scripts don’t always get all the insurance and health policy details right, but I can vouch for the fact that they definitely work hard to understand the nuances. It has to work as a compelling story, too. @robinr.bsky.social

Did you miss our Wonk Shop from February, "Consolidation and Integration in Health Care?" Watch www.kff.org/event/consol... or Listen shows.acast.com/6238b4c3dc63...

Our new @kff.org report summarizes the role health care has historically played in elections using data from KFF, exit polls, AP Votecast, and more. We show how health care, especially health care costs, may play a role in the upcoming midterms. www.kff.org/public-opini...

A big reason hospital prices are so high: New @kff.org analysis shows 97% of metropolitan areas have highly concentrated markets for inpatient hospital care based on thresholds used in current antitrust guidelines. www.kff.org/health-costs...

after readers & ai detectors flagged ai suspicions in a modern love piece, the author told me she "did utilize ai as a tool”—using five chatbots for inspiration, guidance & correction. 🤯 research suggests this is happening in big papers more than we realize. [GIFT LINK: @theatlantic.com]

New KFF polling shows 1 in 3 adults say they’ve used AI chatbots in the past year for health information. See more findings about AI use for health information: https://on.kff.org/4lMR4wq

Health insurance can be confusing. How well do you understand: • Deductibles • Copays vs. coinsurance • Out-of-network bills • Surprise billing protections • Prior authorization Take @kff.org's 10-question quiz and share it with someone who could use it. www.kff.org/private-insu...

Oh no!

We put together a great new resource of all of our polling on health information and public trust. We will be updating it OFTEN and it can be your go-to source for our latest polling on these topics. Bookmark it!

Snowed in? A few minutes is enough to test your knowledge of how court rulings, reconciliation bills, and expiring provisions affect the Affordable Care Act. Try this ACA knowledge quiz. ⬇️ www.kff.org/affordable-c...

NEW: Our latest count of the # of states that have decoupled their childhood vaccine recommendations form the federal government: it's now up to 28. A big increase from just a few months ago. www.kff.org/state-health...

It's a hard test!

While federal policy debate continues on the Affordable Care Act's future structure, how well do you understand what the ACA actually does today and what could change next? Take @kff.org's new quiz and share your score.⬇️ www.kff.org/affordable-c...

The federal government has announced that 22.8 million people have signed up for ACA marketplace coverage for this year, down 1.5 million from last year with enhanced tax credits expiring. The coverage loss will likely grow as people don’t actually make their premium payments.

NEW: Our take on HHS' changes to the federal vaccine schedule that reduce the number of routinely recommended vaccines for kids, and now make the U.S. an outlier in recommending so few. w/ @joshmich.bsky.social www.kff.org/other-health...

⚡ Do we want to outsource U.S. vaccine policy to Denmark? KFF’s Josh Michaud looks at the implications of such a change in recommendations that HHS is reportedly considering: on.kff.org/44EzROx #QuickTake

With no extension of enhanced tax credits, ACA enrollees are going to start the year with premium payments increasing by an average of 114%, or over $1,000 a year per person. Some will find a way to pay it, some have switched to higher deductibles, and some have dropped coverage.

@kff.org released an interactive tool to track national and state data and policy, federal guidance, state implementation decisions and 1115 waivers related to #Medicaid work requirements. Check it out and bookmark the page as we will be making updates over time www.kff.org/medicaid/med...

No one likes prior authorization review. But could we get rid of it? My new column: www.kff.org/from-drew-al...

⚡ KFF’s @sartiga.bsky.social explains that the proposed change to the public charge rule would likely lead to further declines in use of health care and programs among immigrant families. #QuickTake https://on.kff.org/445QwKs

Really excited to share our latest survey of immigrants work @kff.org. We're able to see how immigrants are faring now amid increased immigration enforcement compared to 2023. Check out our KFF reports below and stories from @nytimes.com

Our survey of immigrants with the NYT, out now, shows while the immigration crackdown has caused fear and anxiety, immigrants still prefer the U.S. to where they came from and are optimistic about the future. With that resilience, nativism can’t win long term.

BREAKING: Trump is restoring a rule that penalizes lawfully present immigrants who use Medicaid, arguing that “government benefits should not incentivize immigration.” Advocates warn the rule will cause both individual suffering & negative population-wide effects. www.politico.com/news/2025/11...

The share of veterans enrolled in Medicaid varies across states, ranging from as low as 6% in North Dakota and New Hampshire to as high as 15% in Louisiana, Montana, New Mexico, and New York. https://on.kff.org/4p2i3Vl

The July 2025 reconciliation law created a $50B rural health fund to help offset the impact of the law on rural areas. Our brief suggests that state awards from most of the fund could vary only modestly despite large differences in rural health needs 👇(1/9): www.kff.org/state-health...

NEW: Trump's weight loss drug deal promises big savings — but some details are murky www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

We also play this out in the 2025 election on Tuesday www.kff.org/quick-take/w...

Yoshinobu Yamamoto is the 2025 World Series MVP 🏆 He joins Hideki Matsui (2009) as the only Japanese-born winners of the award.

To anyone not into baseball I’m sorry but also get into baseball

Across all states, benchmark ACA premiums will rise an average of 26% next year, though most enrollees would see sharper increases if the enhanced tax credits expire. KFF’s Cynthia Cox explains the numbers. #QuickTake https://on.kff.org/3WNhiDz

Leaving it all out there, illustrated.

Millions of Americans are bracing themselves for a significant hike in their 2026 health insurance premiums without the subsidies at the center of the government shutdown battle. It comes as insurance costs are rising significantly throughout the country.

Shohei Ohtani Just Had the Best Playoff Game in Major League History blogs.fangraphs.com/shohei-ohtan...

They are restaurateurs and beauticians, chiropractors and funeral directors. They are freelancers, contractors and gig workers. And they now find themselves stuck in the middle of the political battle that has shut down the government.

Reminder, going into this year, HHS had more than 80,000 employees located across the U.S. and the world, and half of the workforce was outside the greater Washington, D.C. area. www.kff.org/affordable-c...

New from @cynthiaccox.bsky.social Is it Too Late for ACA Insurers to Change Their Premiums? www.kff.org/quick-take/i...

Course-ready content for 2025–26: 16 updated modular Health Policy 101 chapters edited by @drewaltman.bsky.social, organized by core topics, and updated at least annually so the fundamentals can link to current events like the 2025 reconciliation law. www.kff.org/other-health... Image by ChatGPT.

New 2025 edition of Health Policy 101 is live. Chapters span Medicaid, the ACA, Medicare, costs, public health, and more. The update reflects major 2025 developments, including the federal budget reconciliation law’s changes to Medicaid and the ACA. www.kff.org/other-health...

There have been a number of congressional and administrative actions undertaken by the Trump administration that are going to impact health coverage and care for immigrant families across America. New piece by @kff.org discusses all the changes in one place www.kff.org/immigrant-he...

Looking forward to the world premiere screening of Diamond Diplomacy, a film "exploring the long and complex relationship between the U.S. and Japan through the shared love of baseball."https://www.diamonddiplomacy.com/

This is a remarkable statistic: 18.7 million out of the 24.3 million Obamacare enrollees are in states won by President Trump in 2024. www.kff.org/quick-take/m...

Support for Congress to extend the enhanced premium tax credits remains very high, even among Republicans and MAGA supporters.

H.R.1 ends health coverage eligibility for many lawfully present immigrants. It doesn't change health coverage options for undocumented immigrants who are already ineligible for federally funded health coverage under longstanding policy. More on this @kff.org : www.kff.org/quick-take/r...

How will it affect family budgets if the ACA enhanced tax credits are not extended? For lower income (23k) the increase alone is a quarter of what they spend on food. More moderate income (80k), well more than 2x their food budget. My latest column:

A movement to protect Americans from medical debt has shifted to the states since the Trump administration halted federal rules enacted by former President Joe Biden. Outcomes are mixed. kffhealthnews.org/news/article...

26 states have moved to allow pharmacists to administer COVID-19 vaccines without an Rx (5 do so for other vaccines). 13 states require state-regulated insurers to cover COVID-19 vaccines at no cost (4 for other vaccines). 22 states rely on non-federal sources for vaccine guidelines.

What are states’ vaccine policies? Are they allowing broad access, given recent federal developments and White House actions? Examine what’s going on with the guidance informing state actions on vaccines as well as pharmacy access and insurance coverage. https://on.kff.org/3IhxRnr

The Pitt has plans to tackle stories next season related to federal health care cuts. I've got some ideas in a new column out in @jama.com. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Q: The US spends almost 2x on healthcare - why? Is it the 💰prices, or ⬆️use? A: It's (still) the prices. We pay 2x prices (and often use less: fewer in-person physician visits, shorter hospital stays) www.healthsystemtracker.org/chart-collec... #Quality #Affordability #Healthcare

The Trump administration’s “Make Health Tech Great Again” initiative aims at promoting the digital sharing of health information & boosting access to AI applications and other tools. Our new brief explains the new effort in the context of earlier efforts: https://on.kff.org/3HHRVPu