West Health-Gallup Poll Finds U.S. Healthcare Affordability Falls in 2025
Only 49% of U.S. adults were cost secure in 2025, and about half worried they could not afford needed care next year, the poll found.
- New data from the West Health-Gallup Center published Thursday shows only 49% of U.S. adults are considered "cost secure," down from 56% in 2021 as healthcare affordability declines.
- The survey, conducted from October to December 2025, precedes major health policy shifts including Congress's Medicaid cuts and the decision not to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies that took effect after data collection.
- Older Americans covered by Medicare saw security fall from 73% in 2021 to 61% in 2025, while the gender gap widened, leaving only 42% of women "cost secure" last year.
- Arizona resident Xavier Chapa faces a $3,000 medical bill forcing his family to cut his 8-year-old son's summer camp from full-day to half-day programs, exemplifying broader financial strain.
- About half of respondents remain anxious about paying for healthcare services in 2026, with affordability concerns now top of mind for Americans as midterm elections approach.
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32 Articles
Data show that the affordability of health care has decreased in several demographic groups, especially among young adults and women
How Many Americans Can Afford High-Quality Healthcare? Poll Finds the Number Dropped
(MedPage Today) -- Twannetta Weaver felt like she made the responsible choice when she enrolled in a high-deductible health insurance plan through her employer, an option that avoided high premiums and allowed her to save for retirement. Then...
MyCentralOregon.com
Fewer than half of Americans say they can afford healthcare: Gallup
Close-up of examination table in doctor’s office (Grace Cary/Getty Images) (NEW YORK) — Fewer than 49% of Americans can afford healthcare, the lowest rate since tracking began in 2021, according to Gallup data released Thursday. In a single year, roughly 2.8 million people no longer identified as being “Cost Secure” meaning they could no longer afford access to quality care or pay for visits and prescriptions, according to the data. Worry about …
Healthcare affordability in America drops to lowest level since 2021
New research released today from the West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America finds that fewer than half of Americans (49%) are considered "Cost Secure," meaning they can consistently afford healthcare and prescription medications when and where they need them, the lowest level recorded since West Health and Gallup launched its Healthcare Affordability Index in 2021.
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- 48% of the sources lean Left, 48% of the sources are Center
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