Health Care Costs Impacting Families' Financial Decisions

Follow Drugslib on

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com

via HealthDay

MONDAY, March 16, 2026 -- One-third of Americans are making financial trade-offs to pay for health care, according to a survey released March 12 by the West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America.

The nationally representative survey of 19,535 U.S. adults conducted from June through August 2025 estimated that more than 82 million Americans had made at least one daily life trade-off in the past year to pay for health care expenses. The most common actions taken included prescription rationing and nonadherence (15 percent) and borrowing money (15 percent). As expected, the financial strain is most common among households earning <$24,000 a year (55 percent) and those without health insurance (62 percent). However, trade-offs are not limited to low-income households, with 25 percent of adults in households earning $90,000 to $120,000 a year also making trade-offs, along with 11 percent of adults in households earning ≥$240,000.

In a separate survey conducted Oct. 27 to Dec. 22, 2025 (5,660 adults), many Americans revealed they are delaying events such as surgical and medical treatments (26 percent), changing jobs (18 percent), or purchasing a new home (14 percent) due to health care cost pressures. Additionally, nearly 9 percent said they postponed their retirement, and 6 percent have put off having or adopting a child. Major life decisions were postponed across household incomes but impacted half of households earning $48,000 to <$180,000 versus 34 percent of households earning $180,000 to <$240,000 and 25 percent of households earning ≥$240,000.

"When families across every income level are forced to choose between medical bills and paying their heating or electric bill -- that’s not a personal budgeting problem -- it's a systems failure," Tim Lash, president of the West Health Policy Center, said in a statement.

More Information

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

Source: HealthDay

Posted : 2026-03-17 01:56

Read more

Disclaimer

Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Drugslib.com is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Drugslib.com information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Drugslib.com does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Drugslib.com's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Drugslib.com's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners.

The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Drugslib.com does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Drugslib.com provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.

Popular Keywords