RAFs

RAFs is an acronym that can refer to several terms in different fields. The most common uses are in military, health economics, and science.

In a military context, RAFs may refer to the Royal Air Force, the United Kingdom’s air and space warfare service. The Royal Air Force, formed in 1918, operates a range of aircraft and support capabilities. While the standard usage is to refer to the organization as “the RAF,” the plural form RAFs can appear in discussions about multiple formations, commands, or historical comparisons involving more than one air force unit or national service.

In health economics and insurance, risk adjustment factors (RAFs) are variables used to adjust payments or performance assessments based on the risk profile of patients. RAFs help account for expected differences in health care costs due to factors such as age, gender, and diagnoses, enabling fairer comparisons across plans or providers. In the United States, Medicare Advantage and other programs use risk-adjustment models that incorporate these factors to determine capitation payments and quality assessments. The specific factors and their weights vary by model and version.

In science, the RAF family refers to a group of serine/threonine protein kinases known as A-Raf, B-Raf, and C-Raf. These kinases participate in the MAPK/ERK signaling pathway and influence cell division, differentiation, and survival. Aberrant RAF signaling is associated with several cancers, most notably B-raf with certain activating mutations such as V600E. In scientific writing, “RAF kinases” or “the RAFs” may be used to refer to the family collectively.

Because RAFs can denote different concepts, the intended meaning is usually clear from context or clarified when necessary.