The trend: The number of Americans who can afford quality healthcare is dropping, and many US consumers are borrowing money to pay their medical bills despite having health insurance. These are key findings from two recent West Health-Gallup surveys of US adults conducted late last year.
Digging into the data: 11% of consumers are “cost desperate”—defined by West Health-Gallup as lacking access to quality, affordable care and recently being unable to pay for needed care and medication.