Americans borrowed $74 billion to cover medical bills in 2024, study finds
FILE-A doctor checks a patient in an operating room. (Photo credit should read SAEED KHAN/AFP via Getty Images)
The inflated cost of health care resulted in 31 million Americans borrowing $74 billion to cover their health care expenses in 2024, according a recent Gallup poll.
Over 3,500 people were polled by Gallup and West Health, a group of nonprofit health care organizations, on Nov. 11-18, 2024.
Americans under 50 years old borrow more for health care expenses
Why you should care:
Approximately 18% of young adults aged 18 to 29 said they needed to borrow to pay more for health care costs, with similar numbers reported by adults 30-49 years old. However, only 9% of Americans 50 to 64 years old and only 2% of individuals 65 and older said they had to borrow money to cover their medical bills, according to a new Gallup poll.
More than 50% of people polled say they borrow at least $500 or more to pay medical bills
By the numbers:
About 58% of Americans say they borrowed $500 or more for medical expenses, while 38% report borrowing less than $500, which collectively amounts to roughly $74 billion. Fifty-one percent of men admitted to borrowing $1,000 or more to pay for health care bills compared to 36% for women.
RELATED: Medical debt will be removed from credit reports: What this means for Americans
Meanwhile, half of Americans 50 years old and older admit they borrowed $3,000 or money to pay for health care expenses in the past 12 months. But this amount was different for other age groups with 30–49-year-olds saying they borrowed $750 and 18-29 years old borrowed $300, the poll shows.
Medical debt worries high among Americans
Dig deeper:
Fifty-eight percent of people admit they are concerned that a major health event might lead to personal medical debt, including 28% of respondents who say they are "very concerned" about the possibility.
About 52% of Americans 65 years old and older say they are "somewhat" or "very concerned" about the possibility of medical debt if they experience a major health event or someone in their home.
RELATED: Medical debt banned from appearing on credit reports in new Biden administration rule
Gallup noted that three out of five Americans under the age of 65 years old say they are "somewhat" or "very concerned" about potential medical debt.
Separately, 62% of African Americans and 63% of Hispanic Americans say they are somewhat or very concerned about facing medical debt, compared with 56% of White Americans who have the same concern. Meanwhile 62% of women report their concerns about medical debt at a higher rate than 54% of men.
RELATED: Nearly half of Americans say debt is affecting their health: Study
These medical debt worries are also shared by over six in 10 Americans living in homes earning up to $120,000 per year. However, this uneasiness does decline with people earning more money with 40% of Americans making $180,000 or more still admit they have concerns regarding medical debt.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by Gallup and West Health, which polled more than 3,500 people for a survey on Nov. 11-18, 2024. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.