With the problem of the uninsured continuing to grow, states have taken the lead in developing proposals to reform of their health care systems with the goal of significantly increasing the number of people with health coverage.  An interactive map and related summaries of plans track which states have enacted or are planning comprehensive initiatives to cover their uninsured population.

The economic downturn has strained family finances and led some Americans to cut back on medications and medical care. The Foundation has a number of resources that shed light on how Americans and states are faring and provide background on the uninsured, employer-sponsored health insurance costs, trends in states’ Medicaid enrollment and spending and prior efforts to support the Medicaid program during a slumping economy.

Based on data from Kaiser's Second Post-Katrina Survey, this Survey Brief finds that New Orleans continues to have a sizeable population of low-income adults in 2008, and that these adults are more likely than other adults in the city to still be dealing with recovery from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and financial and health care challenges.  

This updated fact sheet discusses the predominant forms of health insurance coverage for women ages 18 to 64, including coverage rates, benefits, recent coverage trends, and issues related to uninsured women.

This primer, updated with 2007 data, reviews the basic profile of the uninsured population, how they receive care, the latest trends in health insurance coverage, and what the options are for increasing coverage.

This policy brief examines the underlying shifts in health insurance coverage in 2007 that led to an increase in coverage and projects that the current economic downturn and rising unemployment rate likely will cause the number of uninsured to grow by at least 2 million in 2008.

This policy brief finds about 39 million working-age adults nationally reported cost as a barrier to receiving needed health care in 2006, a number that grew by an average of 1 million people annually over the decade studied.  Uninsured working-aged adults experienced the most consistent erosion over the 10 years, resulting in a widening gap in access to care between insured and uninsured adults.

Kaiser's new series of election briefs frame the challenges the health care system faces, provide basic facts, and offer questions to assess the presidential candidates' plan on key health policy issues.

In the latest installment of "Pulling It Together, From Drew Altman" series, the Kaiser Family Foundation's president and CEO argues that trends in the marketplace and differences in approaches to health reform warrant more attention to a fundamental question that has not received much public discussion or debate: what do we want health insurance to be?

This eighth annual 50-state survey on Medicaid and state budget actions finds enrollment began to rise in fiscal year 2008 with states expecting even larger increases for fiscal year 2009.  With the increased enrollment, Medicaid spending is also rising more rapidly than in the recent past.