Unaffordable Health Care Costs and Devastating Medical Debt

The “One-Two Punch”

Years-long public opinion research by United States of Care (USofCare) demonstrates consistent and overwhelming struggles that everyday people have affording the health care they need. Too often these affordability struggles result in the devastating reality of medical debt. Year after year, health care costs continue to rise, and roughly one-third of people have made the anguishing decision to forego other daily expenses to keep up. This experience often crescendos into the crippling reality of medical debt and, sometimes, bankruptcy, even across income levels and coverage status. Caught in a hamsterwheel of rising health care costs and incurred debt to maintain access to care, it is no wonder that research shows deep mistrust of the health care industry.

In the absence of federal action, several states are taking aim at policies to protect people from medical debt. As Congress considers ways to improve health care affordability, state actions on medical debt protection can provide policy options to address this part of the affordability crisis. Additionally, understanding the depth of people’s experiences with medical debt can help inform broader reforms to the health care system overall. 

With the goal of understanding the depth of these experiences, United States of Care Action commissioned Morning Consult to conduct a poll between April 6-April 7, 2026 among a sample of 2,001 adults (margin of error +/- 2%). Key takeaways from this poll reveals that:

• Health Care Affordability is Out of Reach: The burden of health care costs are extensive and run deep, even when accounting for coverage type. These cost burdens hit people as they obtain and maintain health coverage, as well as when they need care.
• Medical Debt Burden and Experiences are Extensive: Regardless of coverage status and type and income level, people are shouldering medical debt that is driving them to manage their medical debt in a variety of ways. 
• People Desire Policymakers to Address the Cost Burden, and Distrust Industry: Across demographics, people are looking to policymakers for reforms and solutions that will alleviate their affordability concerns; and people don’t trust private health care companies to lower costs on their own.
• People Want Congress to Prioritize Lowering Costs: More so than improving access to care (21%), increasing insurance coverage (12%), or improving quality (11%), people view lowering health care costs (39%) as the top priority for Congressional action.

The High Cost Burden is Felt at Every Turn, Regardless of Coverage Type

Top Health Care Costs with the Biggest Financial Impact on People

Percentages do not add up to 100% due to the survey question, which asked respondents to select the top two costs they experience as most difficult.

When Hit with Medical Bills People Can’t Pay, People Manage in Various Ways

Top Health Care Costs with the Biggest Financial Impact on People

*Self-Purchased Insurance: People that selected health cover as a “plan purhcased by yourself”

Over Half (53%) of People Distrust Private Health Care Companies To Lower Costs On Their Own

By Political Affiliation:

• 55% Democrats
• 52% Independents
• 52% Republicans

By Income:

• 52% of people who indentified earning less than $50K annually
• 53% of people who indentified earning between $50K and $100K annually
• 55% of people who indentified earning more than $100K annually

Lowering Health Care Costs Tops The List of Issues People Want Congress to Prioritize

Poll results show broad support for numerous policy solutions to lower costs and protect people from medical debt.

The Top Health Care Issue People Want Congress to Prioritize: Lowering Health Care Costs is #1

• 39% Lowering health care costs
• 21% Improving Access to Care
• 12% Increasing Insurance Coverage
• 11% Improving Quality
• 16% Don’t Know or No Opinion

A Majority of People Want Congressional Action to Regulate Health Care Companies

People agree that Congress should act to ensure affordable health care, even if that means regulating health care companies.

• 69% agree (42% strongly agree)
• 22% neither agree or disagree
• 9% disagree

Across Political Affiliations, People Agree Congress Should Act:

• 81% identify as Democrat
• 66% identify as Republican
• 59% identify as Independent

Our Poll Results Are Clear: Policymakers Must Act to Lower Health Care Costs For People

The cost of health care is unaffordable and people overwhelmingly want policymakers to take action. While this poll surveys a national sample, these sentiments are echoed at the state level as seen in recent polling we conducted in Maine, Minnesota, and North Carolina.

In short, these poll results: 

• Show the deep challenges that people face with affording their health care in every aspect of the health care system – inclusive of premiums, copays, deductibles, prescription drug prices, and hospital prices.
• Give lawmakers assurance that there is overwhelming bipartisan support for policies that deliver on people’s desire for the relief from financial hardship and stress caused by the health care system. 
• Underscore how highly people are prioritizing candidates’ support for addressing health care costs as they consider who to vote for in upcoming midterm elections. 
• Reinforce previous findings revealing deep mistrust with the health care system, particularly of private industry actors, and people’s expectation that lawmakers take action to regulate prices and industry behaviors to lower costs.
• Demonstrate that the vast majority of people believe the status quo is unacceptable and desire targeted, incremental reforms that tackle their pain points with the health care system rather than advancing major reforms that overhaul the larger system.
• Offer a variety of policy solutions that Congress can take up now to make meaningful progress toward addressing affordability for people.