Bankruptcy concerns continue to shape Americans’ views on health care

Households earning less than $40,000 a year are more than four times as likely to be carrying long-term medical debt than those earning $100,000 or more.

Americans’ concern over the cost of health care could play a role in the outcome of the next presidential election. A study released earlier this week by West Health and Gallup interviewed 1,007 U.S. adults and indicated that half of U.S. adults fear that a major health event could lead to bankruptcy, which is an uptick from 45% in 2019. The increase is even sharper among people of color, where concern over illness-induced bankruptcy rose from 52% to 64%.

According to the report, 15% of adults say at least one member of their household has medical debt that they will not be able to repay within the next year.

Related: Expect more medical debt in the wake of COVID-19

Income may be a direct factor, with the West Health and Gallup study designating households earning less than $40,000 a year more than four times as likely to be carrying long-term medical debt than those earning $100,000 or more. But if medical debts are going unpaid, it might not be for lack of trying.

Per the report, 26% of respondents — and 43% of non-white adults — would need to borrow money to pay a $500 medical bill, with 12% using a credit card or a loan from a financial institution and 14% soliciting aid from a family member or friend.

“For some persons, these forms of borrowing could ordinarily be characterized by prompt repayment (such as simply paying off the credit card at the end of the month), but for many others, it is likely to feed into a cycle of accumulating medical debt that cannot be readily repaid,” the report says.

The price of prescription drugs is likely contributing to the scope of medical debt some people are facing. A June West Health and Gallup report showed that 66% of respondents were reporting an increase in the cost of prescription drugs — and now those concerns may have an impact on the forthcoming 2020 presidential election.

This week’s report found that 35% of respondents said that lowering the cost prescription drugs is either the single most important issue influencing their vote (5%) or among the most important issues (30%).

“Despite the severe disruption the global pandemic is causing most Americans, curtailing the ongoing rising costs of prescription drugs could be an important issue factoring into their choice of candidate,” the report notes.

Read more: 

• As if student loans weren’t enough, millennials also rack up the most medical debt
• Medicaid expansion takes a bite out of medical debt
• Consumers more likely to pay hospital bills if costs are clear