Out-of-Pocket Healthcare Spending

Healthcare Affordability Woes Affect High- and Low-Income Patients Alike

November 20, 2023 - It’s long been understood that healthcare in the United States is unaffordable for the nation’s poorest patients, but a new analysis from the Commonwealth Fund shows that healthcare affordability is a big problem for high-income people in the US, too. The report, based on findings from the Commonwealth Fund’s 2023 International...


More Articles

High Healthcare Costs Bar Care Access Despite Insurance Status

by Sara Heath

Having health insurance coverage isn’t enough to attenuate high healthcare costs and their impacts on patient access to care, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report. Anywhere from 43 to 57...

Out-of-Pocket Healthcare Costs Double with Dementia Diagnosis

by Sara Heath

A dementia diagnosis is going to cost you, with new data from the University of Michigan showing that individual personal wealth dropped after a diagnosis while out-of-pocket healthcare costs nearly...

Consumers Feel the Pinch of Medical Debt, Skip Healthcare Access

by Sara Heath

The problem of medical debt is getting worse, with new Debt.com data showing that inflation and rising medical costs are putting patients in a sticky financial situation and leaving about a third...

Expanding Cancer Screening Access Beyond Charity Care

by Sara Heath

It’s not uncommon for healthcare organizations to set up free breast cancer screening events as part of their charity care efforts to serve low-income, uninsured people. But what happens when a screening turns into a breast cancer...

Over A Quarter of Americans Say High Costs Bar Patient Care Access

by Sara Heath

A new report from the Federal Reserve paints a devastating picture of how healthcare costs impact patient care access. In 2022, 28 percent of adults went without some kind of medical care because of...

Healthcare Costs, Patient Care Access Challenges Folks with Long COVID

by Sara Heath

The one in five adults who have experienced long COVID also have trouble with other aspects of healthcare, with new Urban Institute findings indicating issues with healthcare costs and patient care...

Does Cost-Sharing for Screening Result in Missed Cancer Diagnoses?

by Sara Heath

Patients who face cost-sharing and high out-of-pocket healthcare costs for breast cancer screening might not access any applicable follow-up tests they need, according to research published in JAMA...

Challenging Patient Financial Responsibility Uncommon, But Fruitful

by Sara Heath

Most patients don’t challenge their medical bills, but new survey data from YouGov conducted on behalf of AKASA shows that negotiating patient financial responsibility could be a fruitful...

Bad Economy Adds to Longstanding Cost, Medication Adherence Problems

by Sara Heath

The economic downturn is hitting healthcare hard, with new reports showing that medication adherence is taking a hit while consumers find themselves strapped for cash. In a recent survey of over 1,000...

45% of Women Forego Preventive Care Access, Care Costs a Key Barrier

by Sara Heath

High healthcare costs are keeping nearly half of American women from preventive care access, according to a new Ipsos poll fielded on behalf of the Alliance for Women’s Health and Prevention...

$35 Cap on Insulin Could Boost Medication Adherence, Satisfaction

by Sara Heath

The Inflation Reduction Act’s $35 cap on insulin cost-sharing is poised to improve patient satisfaction, medication adherence, and prescription affordability, according to a research note...

Patient Financial Responsibility Dissuades ED Care Access

by Sara Heath

The specter of a big bill and high patient financial responsibility is getting in the way of emergency department (ED) care access some individuals might actually need, according to data published in...

Patients of Color Feel Impact of Inflation, Patient Care Access Problems

by Sara Heath

Inflation is creating healthcare affordability problems, with more people of color than White folks saying the rising cost of healthcare is limiting patient care access, according to recent polling...

High Out-of-Pocket Healthcare Costs Dissuade Patient Care Access

by Sarai Rodriguez

For many Houston adults, high out-of-pocket healthcare costs have deterred them from accessing care, according to new survey data collected by Sesame via Pollfish. The nation's fourth-largest city...

How Cost Drives Poor Patient Access to Care for American Men

by Sara Heath

Patient access to care is worse for American men than it is for men in any other similarly developed nation, a trend researchers from the Commonwealth Fund attributed to poorer public health and high...

Patient Financial Responsibility Burdens Affect Pre-Medicare Crowd

by Sara Heath

The rising cost of healthcare and increases in patient financial responsibility continue to be a burden for older adults, with between a quarter and a third of folks over age 50 saying they need to go...

Which Barriers Block Mental Healthcare Access for Young Adults?

by Sara Heath

More and more young adults are citing cost and stigma as key mental healthcare access barriers, according to the latest in JAMA Network Open. The study, published as a research note, found that the...

Medical Financial Hardship Drives Mortality Risk for Cancer Survivors

by Sarai Rodriguez

Cancer survivors struggling with medical financial hardship face a higher mortality risk than cancer survivors who do not face the same financial strain, according to a national study published in the...

Better Cost Data Key to Patient-Provider Communication on Affordability

by Sara Heath

Healthcare providers need more—and better—information to be able to facilitate the patient-provider communication patients desire about their out-of-pocket costs, according to two new...