The Commonwealth Fund

Putting the Extraordinary Increase in ACA Premiums in 2026 in Perspective

ACA premiums increased by 21.7 percent on average in 2026 — far outpacing expected premium increases in the ...
The Commonwealth Fund

Affordability Concerns Are Driving States to Curb Hospital Prices

As we face a new year, we are experiencing nationwide double-digit commercial premium increases that are making annual family ...
Commonwealth Fund

State Strategies for Slowing Health Care Cost Growth in the Commercial Market

Roughly 55 percent of Medicaid enrollees are working full or part time, and a number aren’t eligible for health insurance through their jobs. Read more in an explainer here. The American public has ...
Commonwealth Fund

The Health Costs of Gun Violence: How the U.S. Compares to Other Countries

Roughly 55 percent of Medicaid enrollees are working full or part time, and a number aren’t eligible for health insurance through their jobs. Read more in an explainer here. Firearm mortality in the ...
Commonwealth Fund

Maternity Care Providers and Trainees Are Leaving States with Abortion Restrictions, Further Widening Gaps in Care

Maxine Fuqua, 33 (right), of Wilmar, Ark., is examined by Leia O’Fallon, APRN, with the help of Fuqua’s daughter Kael, 8, during a routine checkup at 29 weeks pregnant at Mainline Health Monticello ...
Commonwealth Fund

State Cost-Control Reforms and ERISA Preemption

Roughly 55 percent of Medicaid enrollees are working full or part time, and a number aren’t eligible for health insurance through their jobs. Read more in an explainer here. States have an especially ...
Commonwealth Fund

Medicaid Expansion in Kentucky: Early Successes, Future Uncertainty

Roughly 55 percent of Medicaid enrollees are working full or part time, and a number aren’t eligible for health insurance through their jobs. Read more in an explainer here. By taking a proactive ...
Commonwealth Fund

Responses to Policy Proposals and Inquiries

Comment on the Calendar Year 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (9/10/25) Comments on CMS Marketplace Integrity and Affordability Proposed Rule (4/11/25) Response to 2024 Medicare Physician Fee ...
The Commonwealth FundOpinion

What Can U.S. Employers Do About Rising Healthcare Costs?

On average, healthcare is 7% of employee compensation in the U.S. private sector. Assuming that total employee compensation ...
Commonwealth Fund

What an Ideal Health Care System Might Look Like

While nearly all Americans age 65 and older are covered by Medicare, their experiences seeking and receiving health care can vary significantly. Research shows that older Black and Latinx Medicare ...
Commonwealth Fund

Tackling High Health Care Prices: A Look at Four Purchaser-Led Efforts

Roughly 55 percent of Medicaid enrollees are working full or part time, and a number aren’t eligible for health insurance through their jobs. Read more in an explainer here. In some regions, employers ...
Commonwealth Fund

Maternal Mortality in the United States, 2025

This brief was originally published in December 2020 and updated in July 2025. In 2023, at a time when maternal mortality was declining worldwide, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the ...