Medical debt is escalating, causing around one-third of patients to skip healthcare access in 2023, up from 28 percent in 2022. Inflation and rising medical costs are exacerbating this crisis, with 67 percent of respondents struggling to pay medical bills due to inflation. Unexpectedly, doctor visits now account for most medical debt. While the amount of medical debt is decreasing, this may be due to patients avoiding healthcare. Racial disparities exist, with patients of color feeling the impact of inflation more than their White counterparts, affecting healthcare access and broader social determinants of health.
Medical debt continues to plague consumers, leading to a significant rise in healthcare access issues. Recent data from Debt.com reveals that the problem of medical debt is worsening due to inflation and escalating healthcare costs, causing approximately one-third of patients to forego healthcare access, compared to 28 percent in the previous year.
The survey, encompassing nearly 1,000 healthcare consumers in the United States, underscores the mounting financial strain on patients as they navigate the healthcare landscape amid rising costs for not only medical services but also everyday consumer goods. The nation’s inflation rate has left some patients unable to afford medical care, while others find themselves in dire financial circumstances.
In total, 67 percent of respondents cited the nation’s inflation woes as a hindrance to paying their medical bills, a notable increase from the 57 percent reported in 2022. Furthermore, the survey revealed that 32 percent of respondents had their medical bills in collections, up from 28 percent the previous year.
The affordability crisis in healthcare is transforming into a severe accessibility issue. Among the 1,000 patient respondents, 34 percent reported avoiding medical care due to medical debt, a notable increase from the 28 percent recorded in 2022.
“Inflation may be subsiding, but the damage it wrought will stay with us for a long time,” remarked Debt.com founder and chairperson Howard Dvorkin, CPA. “Medical debt was a growing problem before inflation, even before the pandemic. Now it’s becoming a crisis.”
Interestingly, the survey highlighted an unconventional source of medical debt: doctor visits. While medical debt was historically associated with exorbitantly priced encounters such as emergency room visits and hospitalizations, doctor visits now account for the majority of medical debt.
According to the survey, 17 percent of medical debt resulted from hospitalizations and emergency room visits, while 21 percent stemmed from routine doctor’s appointments. This is a shift from 2020 when only 15 percent of medical debt arose from doctor’s visits, while 25 percent came from hospitalizations.
Other sources of medical debt in 2023 included diagnostic tests (15 percent), dental care (11 percent), outpatient services (10 percent), prescription drugs (7 percent), and nursing home/long-term care (1 percent).
One potential glimmer of hope in the Debt.com survey was the decrease in the amount of debt carried by consumers. In 2023, 56 percent of patients had less than $500 in medical debt, compared to 2020 when only 20 percent had debt in this range, and 34 percent had medical debt between $1,000 and $5,000.
However, this positive trend might have a downside, as Dvorkin suggested that reduced medical debt could be attributed to consumers avoiding healthcare altogether.
“Medical debt doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s quite likely that doctor’s visits have become harder to pay because Americans have many other debts they’re juggling,” explained Dvorkin. “Credit card balances are approaching levels not seen in decades, and student loans aren’t getting any smaller. Add in regular checkups, and it’s a cumulative and pervasive problem.”
The financial stress induced by inflation was foreseeable, with other research firms also identifying issues with healthcare affordability and access due to the nation’s financial challenges.
In October 2022, the Nationwide Retirement Institute reported that one in 10 patients found inflation exacerbating healthcare affordability and access problems. Over the past year, 14 percent of the 1,140 individuals surveyed by Harris Poll disclosed canceling or postponing plans to see healthcare specialists. Additionally, one in 10 respondents admitted to canceling or postponing medication and annual physical check-ups (11 percent).
As is typical in many aspects of healthcare, racial disparities are at play. An August 2022 report from NPR, the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation revealed that patients of color were disproportionately affected by inflation in terms of medical care affordability.
One in four American Indian/Alaska Native individuals reported serious difficulties affording medical care or prescription drugs, followed by 22 percent of Black individuals and 19 percent of Latino individuals. In contrast, only 16 percent of White individuals and 14 percent of Asian respondents faced similar challenges.
Moreover, respondents indicated that inflation was also making it harder for them to access other essential goods like groceries and to pay bills such as rent or mortgages. This directly impacts key social determinants of health, according to researchers from NPR, Harvard, and RWJF.
Mary Findling, assistant director of the Harvard Opinion Research Program at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, warned, “Even though there are many programs aimed to help families with food costs, much higher rates of Black, Latino, and Native American households currently say they are facing serious problems affording food. This is likely to have major immediate and longer-term health consequences for millions of families.”
