The research also noted that 58.5 percent of bankruptcies were caused specifically by medical bills, while 44.3 percent were caused in part by income loss due to illness.
Full Answer
How many Americans are struggling with medical debt?
137 million Americans are struggling with medical debt. 137 million Americans are struggling with medical debt. Here’s what to know if you need some relief Research shows that about 137.1 million Americans have faced financial hardship this year because of medical costs.
How many Americans go bankrupt because of medical bills?
Later that year, CNBC reported that NerdWallet found that medical bills caused 646,812 Americans to declare bankruptcy. CNBC extrapolated that to everyone in their household. The average household has three people, which translates to 2 million people affected.
How many Americans can't afford to pay medical bills?
Its survey found that 26% of Americans age 18 to 64 struggled to pay medical bills. 10 According to the U.S. Census, that's 52 million adults. The survey found that 2%, or 1 million, said they declared bankruptcy that year. 11
How many Americans delay medical treatment due to costs of care?
A December 2019 poll conducted by Gallup found 25% of Americans say they or a family member have delayed medical treatment for a serious illness due to the costs of care, and an additional 8% report delaying medical treatment for less serious illnesses.
What is the biggest cause of bankruptcies outside of the United States?
As it turns out, medical bankruptcy is almost unheard of outside of the United States. Other developed economies (except China) have single-payer health care systems where medical costs are financed by taxes, not by premium-financed insurance....Medical Bankruptcies by Country 2022.Country2022 PopulationVatican City799231 more rows
How many Americans have medical debt?
100 million people in America are saddled with health care debt.
What is the number one cause of debt in the United States?
Main source of debt among consumers in the U.S. 2017-2021 In 2021, 24 percent of U.S. consumers said that their main source of debt was their home mortgage, followed by credit card debt. The share of consumers with no debt increased six percent between 2020 and 2021.
What is one of the most common reasons for bankruptcies?
Following is a list of the most common causes of bankruptcy in America today.Medical Expenses. A study done at Harvard University indicates that this is the biggest cause of bankruptcy, representing 62% of all personal bankruptcies. ... Job Loss. ... Poor/Excess Use of Credit. ... Divorce/Separation. ... Unexpected Expenses.
How many people go in debt because of medical bills?
Americans Likely Owe Hundreds of Billions of Dollars in Total Medical Debt. A new KFF analysis of government data estimates that nearly 1 in 10 adults (9%) – or roughly 23 million people – owe medical debt.
What percent of the us can t afford healthcare?
The proportion of Americans with difficulty affording health care varies by income and health insurance coverage. Overall, 16.9% of Americans report at least 1 financial barrier.
How many Americans are debt free?
And yet, over half of Americans surveyed (53%) say that debt reduction is a top priority—while nearly a quarter (23%) say they have no debt. And that percentage may rise.
Who owns the most US debt?
the U.S. governmentBy far, the largest owner of U.S. debt is actually the U.S. government, which holds Treasury securities in various government accounts and pension funds.
How much credit card debt does the average person have?
If you have credit card debt, you're not alone. On average, Americans carry $6,194 in credit card debt, according to the 2019 Experian Consumer Credit Review.
What country has the least number of bankruptcies?
Japan last year had the fewest bankruptcies in a half century. That's how well the government's response to the pandemic has worked in keeping businesses afloat and people employed.
What is the number one cause of bankruptcies in 2021?
Updated April 30, 2021. Medical bills are reported to be the number one cause of U.S. bankruptcies. One study has claimed that 62.1% of bankruptcies were caused by medical issues. 1 Another claims that over 2 million people are adversely affected by their medical expenses.
How many people declare bankruptcy in 2015?
Follow-on Studies. In 2015, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that medical bills made 1 million adults declare bankruptcy. Its survey found that 26% of Americans age 18 to 64 struggled to pay medical bills. 10 According to the U.S. Census, that's 52 million adults. The survey found that 2%, or 1 million, said they declared bankruptcy that year.
Why are estimates different in the past?
Estimates have been different in the past due to the timing of the studies that were conducted, different methods, how the results were interpreted, and the reasons the results were being used . Spin is a concept of using information in a manner that benefits the presenter, or parties associated with the presenter.
Is a bankruptcies estimate based on surveys?
As a result, estimates are based on surveys. Therefore, the answer will depend on how researchers phrase their questions, and how the survey respondents define the cause of their bankruptcy. A variety of factors cause bankruptcies. Many people with medical debt have other debts as well.
Is medical bankruptcy killing the middle class?
Medical Bankruptcy Is Killing The American Middle Class. A new study has found that a horrifying 530,000 families turn to bankruptcy each year due to medical bills they can’t pay. In the end, it’s easier to declare bankruptcy than to allow oneself to drown in medical expenses. That’s how you know when a country is broken.
Is it easier to declare bankruptcy or to drown in medical expenses?
In the end, it’s easier to declare bankruptcy than to allow oneself to drown in medical expenses. That’s how you know when a country is broken. According to researchers of a new study in the American Public Journal of Health (APJH), the “financial toll of illness on American families” has perhaps gone far beyond the one-off anecdotes, ...
Does middle class insurance save you?
And your middle-class status won’t save you. “For middle-class Americans, health insurance offers little protection. Most of us have policies with so many loopholes, copayments and deductibles that illness can put you in the poorhouse,” Himmelstein said. In fact, bankruptcy due to medical bills is more likely to be the downfall ...
Why do people take money out of retirement?
High health-care bills are the No. 1 reason people would consider taking money out of their retirement accounts or filing for bankruptcy. Before you raid your personal savings, there are some proactive steps you can take to negotiate those balances down or even pursue forgiveness. For 137 million Americans, they can be the scariest bills to open.
Why did Bliss Butler lose her job?
Butler, 59, who lives just outside of Oklahoma City, lost her job at an area museum in 2013. Because it was difficult to make her COBRA medical continuation payments, she ended up uninsured. Bliss Butler, pictured with her boyfriend, has struggled with high medical bills after several unexpected health emergencies.
Can hospitals charge interest on 401(k)?
Some hospitals will be OK with low payments, as long as you’re making progress toward the debt, McClanahan said. Plus, they may not charge you interest. After that, you may think of borrowing against a credit card, home equity line of credit or your 401 (k).
How many people are affected by medical bankruptcy?
Estimates done in different years show that between 600,000 and 1.4 million US residents are affected by medical bankruptcies each year. That statistic is quite troubling.
How many medical bankruptcy cases did Obama have in 2009?
Even though this assumption was based on the Harvard study, Obama’s estimates were higher than the real rate, which was calculated to be about 877,372 cases in 2009.
What are the most significant contributing factors to bankruptcy cases in the US?
However, the study of Nerdwallet Health from 2014 confirmed that medical bills are the single most significant contributing factor to bankruptcy cases in the US, leaving behind credit card or mortgage debts.
What is medical bankruptcy?
Although there is no exact definition, medical bankruptcy is a mechanism to get a discharge of doctor and hospital bills that can amount to thousands of dollars. However, in some cases, people could experience this type of bankruptcy due to a combination of reasons in addition to medical bills, such as job loss.
How much of the federal budget was spent on health care in 2009?
By 2009, the increasing health care costs were consuming 19% of the total federal budget of $3.5 trillion. According to a 2009 Harvard study, bankruptcies due to excessive medical bills accounted for 62.1% of all bankruptcies in the US. The estimated rate of bankruptcy, determined by the study, included not only people who mortgaged a home due ...
How much is deductible for medical insurance?
Nowadays, deductibles can reach $10,000 for one person or $20,000 for a whole family, respectively.
How many people went bankrupt in 2015?
The survey estimated that 2% of them, or one million people, declared bankruptcy because of medical bills that year.
Why are medical workers furloughed?
Medical workers are being furloughed and losing jobs because of the pandemic – including those on the frontlines – as their employers seek to cut costs.
How many people have lost their jobs in the past three weeks?
At the same time, the 16 million people who have lost their jobs in the past three weeks will put an increased burden on the healthcare system if they join the ranks of the uninsured or those who use Medicaid, government health insurance for low-income people.
What does it mean when you are afraid to go to the doctor?
“It could mean some people not getting tested, it could mean some people delaying getting care and potentially harming their own health.”
How many Americans delay medical treatment?
A December 2019 poll conducted by Gallup found 25% of Americans say they or a family member have delayed medical treatment for a serious illness due to the costs of care.
Why are people delaying getting medical care?
Millions of Americans – as many as 25% of the population – are delaying getting medical help because of skyrocketing costs.
What kind of cancer did Anamaria Markle have?
Anamaria Markle, of Port Murray, New Jersey was diagnosed with stage three ovarian cancer in 2017. A clerk for nearly 20 years at the same firm, her family says her employer laid her off after the diagnosis, with one year’s severance and health insurance coverage.
Why did Meghan Markle stop receiving medical care?
Markle decided to stop receiving medical treatment due to the rising costs and debt, and died in September 2018 at the age of 52. “My mom was constantly doing the math of treatment costs while she was on the decline,” Valderrama said. “I really miss my mom.
How many people in the US went without health insurance in 2018?
In 2018, 27.8 million Americans went without any health insurance for the entire year. One of those Americans was the father of Ashley Hudson, who died in 2002 due to an untreated liver disease, an illness that went undiagnosed until a few weeks before his death.
How many people die from not having health insurance?
A 2009 study conducted by researchers at Harvard Medical School found 45,000 Americans die every year as a direct result of not having any health insurance coverage. In 2018, 27.8 million Americans went without any health insurance for the entire year.
What happened to Gretchen Hess Miller?
Substitute teacher Gretchen Hess Miller, 48, of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, was diagnosed with oral cancer in 2009 while pregnant. She has had surgery to remove the cancer, but is supposed to receive annual scans to monitor the cancer, but hasn’t received one in four to five years because her family can’t afford it.
How many Americans have steered clear of medical care?
Over the past year, 22% of Americans say they have steered clear of some sort of medical care — including doctor visits, medications, vaccinations, annual exams, screenings, vision checks and routine blood work — because of the expense, according to a recent online survey of roughly 2,500 U.S. adults conducted on behalf of Bankrate.
How many Americans fail to take their medications?
Last year, Kaiser Family Foundation found 29% of Americans failed to take their medications as prescribed because of the cost, with about 19% of respondents saying they did not fill the prescription and 12% saying they cut pills in half or skipped a dose.
Why do Americans skip medical care?
Nearly 1 in 4 Americans are skipping medical care because of the cost. For many Americans, a trip to the doctor hinges on whether they can afford to go, rather than if it’s a medical necessity. Over the past year, 22% of Americans say they have steered clear of some sort of medical care — including doctor visits, medications, vaccinations, ...
The Harvard Study
Later Studies
- In 2011, researchers Tal Gross and Matthew Notowidigbo found that out-of-pocket medical costs influenced 26% of bankruptcies in low-income households.6 In 2013, two sources created wildly different conclusions from the 2009 study. One claimed 57.1% was a more accurate number than the Harvard/Warren study, while another claimed that two million people are affected by medica…
Follow-On Studies
- In 2015, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that medical bills made one million adultsdeclare bankruptcy. Its survey found that 26% of Americans age 18 to 64 struggled to pay medical bills.10 According to the U.S. Census, that's 52 million adults. The survey found that 2%, or one million, said they declared bankruptcy that year.11 In 2011, Debt.org...
Expenses and Spin Are Equally High
- There is no doubt that medical expenses, and therefore bills, are high. The KFF found that wage increases are not keeping up with rising health care costs—medical insurance premiums increased 54% while earnings have increased by only 26% since 2009.14 Estimates have been different in the past due to the timing of the studies that were conducted, different methods, ho…
The Variables of The Reports
- Researchers disagree on the evidence for medical bills causing bankruptcies. The biggest problem in answering this question is that those filing for bankruptcy aren't required to state the reason. As a result, estimates are based on surveys. Therefore, the answer will depend on how researchers phrase their questions, and how the survey respondents define the cause of their ba…
Final Thoughts on Medical Bankruptcy
- There are many reasons that people file for bankruptcy. Medical expenses do have an effect on people's financial situations, causing some financially responsible people to file for bankruptcy. For others, the expenses are the final push over the financial cliff they were walking along. The debate over medical expense bankruptcy will continue to have a place on political platforms, aro…