New AHRQ Study Examines Multiple Sources of Financial Strain for Patients Paying for Healthcare in the United States

Today, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) announces the publication of a new study in Health Affairs that examines the sources of financial strain for patients paying for healthcare in the United States.

Despite the enactment of the Affordable Care Act and its successes increasing insurance coverage, U.S. residents continue to face challenges paying for healthcare. For some, the problem is high out-of-pocket spending on insurance premiums and care. Others might be forced into temporary debt, paying medical bills over time; and some need to postpone or forego care altogether.

To better understand the health-related financial burden on American residents, Didem M. Bernard, Ph.D., and coauthors from AHRQ used a comprehensive measure that includes out-of-pocket spending, medical debt, and cost-related care delays, reviewing government data from 2018-19 and surveying adults ages 19-64. They found that 7.5 percent of those sampled lived in households with high out-of-pocket burdens, 8.4 percent reported medical debt, and 18.8 percent postponed or skipped care. In all, 27 percent of those questioned confirmed one or more of the indicators. When a looser definition of “financial strain” was used, that share rose to 45.4 percent. 

In what the authors believe is the first study to examine the combined impact of financial burdens, medical debt, and barriers to care, they conclude that although relatively few of those sampled faced multiple problems, many faced at least one. The study in Health Affairs may be found here: https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.2023.00604.

For More Information Contact: media@ahrq.hhs.gov