Medical debt in the U.S. - Statistics & Facts

Medical debt results from the high or unexpected health care expenses that an individual is unable to pay. Unlike other debts, medical debts are usually unplanned, two-thirds of medical debts are the result of a one-time or short-term medical expense arising from acute healthcare needs. An increasing number of Americans are finding unexpected healthcare costs unaffordable, while many are delaying required care due to costs. It is a significant and growing problem in the United States where public health insurance coverage is limited to certain groups of people, mainly through Medicare and Medicaid. In contrast, people in Western Europe and other developed countries like Japan and Australia benefit from some form of universal health coverage that protects them from unaffordable health care costs.

Health insurance in the United States

Since the repeal of the Affordable Care Act individual mandate, people living in the United States are no longer required to have health insurance. The number of people without health insurance in the U.S. has been around 30 million for a few years, leaving them susceptible to medical debt. The country has both public and private insurers, but data regarding U.S. health insurance by type of coverage shows that the majority of people have private health insurance through their employer. Nevertheless, just because an individual has health insurance through their employer does not necessarily make them impervious to medical debt.

How many people have medical debt, and what do they owe?

Surprise medical bills or out-of-network billing are unexpected medical costs that can considerably increase a person's financial burden and lead to medical debt. The latest data suggests that nearly 100 million adults in the U.S. are saddled with medical debt, ranging from under 1,000 U.S. dollars to over 20,000 U.S. dollars. A different survey found that diagnostic tests, trips to doctors or specialists, and emergency room visits were the main sources of medical debt among U.S. adults. Adults with healthcare debt report making a variety of sacrifices and suffering significant financial consequences in their efforts to pay off their debt.

How to solve the problem of medical debt in the United States?

One way to solve the medical debt problem could be to enhance health insurance coverage for everyone through a single-payer healthcare system. Over the last few years, public support and opposition for a Medicare-for-all national health plan has remained fairly consistent. To protect Americans from receiving surprise medical bills from providers the federal government has introduced the No Surprises Act (NSA). Uninsured and self-pay patients are also protected under NSA from unforeseen expenses, as they now have the right to ask for a good faith estimate before receiving care. On an individual level, many people are unaware that they can negotiate with providers to lower their medical bills.

This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.

Percentage of U.S. adults who never had medical debt: 40%

Share of U.S. Americans with a family income under 50K who have received a surprise out-of-network medical bill: 21%

Share of U.S. adults aged 18 to 44 years who said it was difficult to pay a surprise medical bill: 73%

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Percentage of the U.S. population with health insurance in 2020 and 2022, by coverage type

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Percentage of U.S. population with health insurance 2020-2022, by coverage

Leading sources of non-mortgage debt among consumers in the United States in 2023

Savings & Debt

Main source of non-mortgage debt among consumers in the U.S. 2023

Percentage of health insured vs. uninsured adults in the United States from 2003 to 2022

Health System

Percentage adults with health insurance in the U.S. 2003-2022

Recommended statistics

Health insurance in the U.S.

Premium Statistic Percentage adults with health insurance in the U.S. 2003-2022
Percentage adults with health insurance in the U.S. 2003-2022
Percentage of health insured vs. uninsured adults in the United States from 2003 to 2022
Basic Statistic Number of people in the U.S. without health insurance 1997-2022
Number of people in the U.S. without health insurance 1997-2022
Number of people without health insurance in the United States from 1997 to 2022 (in millions)
Premium Statistic Percentage of U.S. population with health insurance 2020-2022, by coverage
Percentage of U.S. population with health insurance 2020-2022, by coverage
Percentage of the U.S. population with health insurance in 2020 and 2022, by coverage type
Basic Statistic Share of income spent on health plan costs by U.S. employees 2008-2020
Share of income spent on health plan costs by U.S. employees 2008-2020
Percentage of median income spent on premium contribution and deductible by U.S. employees from 2008-2020
Premium Statistic Medical debt owed by U.S. adults in 2021, by insurance type
Medical debt owed by U.S. adults in 2021, by insurance type
Percentage of U.S. adults that owed medical debt in 2021, by insurance type*
Premium Statistic Medical bill or debt problem among U.S. adults in 2022, by insurance coverage
Medical bill or debt problem among U.S. adults in 2022, by insurance coverage
Percentage of U.S. adults who had a medical bill or debt problem in 2022, by insurance coverage

Medical debt

Premium Statistic People who currently have or had in the past health care debt in the U.S. in 2022
People who currently have or had in the past health care debt in the U.S. in 2022
Share of people who currently have or had in the past health care debt in the United States as March 2022, by characteristic
Premium Statistic People who currently have or had in the past health care debt in the U.S. 2022
People who currently have or had in the past health care debt in the U.S. 2022
Share who currently have or had in the past five years health care debt in the United States as of March 2022, by ethnicity
Basic Statistic U.S. adults concerned that a health event could lead to bankruptcy 2019-2020, by age
U.S. adults concerned that a health event could lead to bankruptcy 2019-2020, by age
Share of adults in the United States who were extremely concerned or concerned that a major health event in their household could lead to bankruptcy in 2019 and 2020, by age
Basic Statistic Percentage of U.S. adults with medical debt as of 2021
Percentage of U.S. adults with medical debt as of 2021
Percentage of adults in the United States with medical-related debt as of 2021
Basic Statistic Percentage of U.S. adults with medical debt as of 2021, by generation
Percentage of U.S. adults with medical debt as of 2021, by generation
Percentage of adults in the United States with medical debt as of 2021, by generation

Sources of debt and amounts owed

Premium Statistic Sources of medical debt among U.S. adults as of 2022
Sources of medical debt among U.S. adults as of 2022
Percentage of adults in the United States with medical debt who stated their medical debt came from select sources as of 2022
Basic Statistic Percentage of U.S. adults with medical debt who owed select amounts as of 2021
Percentage of U.S. adults with medical debt who owed select amounts as of 2021
Percentage of adults in the United States with medical debt who owed select amounts as of 2021
Premium Statistic Medical debt owed by U.S. adults in 2022, by insurance coverage
Medical debt owed by U.S. adults in 2022, by insurance coverage
Percentage of U.S. adults that owed select amounts of medical debt in 2022, by insurance coverage
Basic Statistic Share of U.S. adults who had successfully negotiated their medical debt as of 2021
Share of U.S. adults who had successfully negotiated their medical debt as of 2021
Percentage of adults in the United States with medical debt who had successfully negotiated their medical debt as of 2021
Premium Statistic Type of debts currently owed due to medical bills in the U.S. in 2022
Type of debts currently owed due to medical bills in the U.S. in 2022
Share of debts currently owed due to medical or dental bills in the U.S. as of March 2022
Premium Statistic Time expected to take to pay off medical debt in the U.S. in 2022, by ethnicity
Time expected to take to pay off medical debt in the U.S. in 2022, by ethnicity
When do you expect you will pay off your medical debt?
Premium Statistic Adults with affected credit score due to medical debts in the U.S. in 2022
Adults with affected credit score due to medical debts in the U.S. in 2022
Share of people whose credit score was negatively affected by medical debt in the U.S. as of March 2022, by ethnicity

Unexpected and unaffordable costs

Premium Statistic Type of health services that led to surprise bills in the U.S. in 2022
Type of health services that led to surprise bills in the U.S. in 2022
Share of U.S. Americans who have received a surprise medical bill since January 2022, by type of health service
Basic Statistic Share of US adults who received surprise medical bill since January 2022, by gender
Share of US adults who received surprise medical bill since January 2022, by gender
Percentage of U.S. Americans who have received a surprise or unexpected medical bills since January 2022, by gender
Basic Statistic U.S. adults who have received surprise medical bill since January 2022, by age
U.S. adults who have received surprise medical bill since January 2022, by age
Share of U.S. American adults who have received a surprise or unexpected medical bills since January 2022, by age
Premium Statistic Share of Americans received a surprise medical bill in U.S. 2022, by ethnicity
Share of Americans received a surprise medical bill in U.S. 2022, by ethnicity
Percentage of U.S. Americans who received a surprise out-of-network medical bill since January 2022, by ethnicity
Basic Statistic Share of US adults who received out-of-network surprise medical bill 2022, by income
Share of US adults who received out-of-network surprise medical bill 2022, by income
Percentage of U.S. Americans who have received a surprise out-of-network medical bill since January 2022, by family income
Premium Statistic Types of hardships people with health care debt endured in the U.S. in 2022
Types of hardships people with health care debt endured in the U.S. in 2022
Share of hardships and sacrifices people with health care debt have experienced in the United States as of 2022
Basic Statistic Healthcare affordability index of Americans in the U.S. in 2021, by income
Healthcare affordability index of Americans in the U.S. in 2021, by income
Distribution of ability to afford healthcare according to the Healthcare Affordability Index of adults in the U.S. in 2021, by annual household income (in U.S. dollars)

Miscellaneous

Basic Statistic Number of court actions taken by U.S. hospitals for unpaid bills 2018-2020
Number of court actions taken by U.S. hospitals for unpaid bills 2018-2020
Number of court actions taken by some of the largest hospitals in the U.S. against patients with unpaid bills from January 1, 2018 to July 31, 2020*
Basic Statistic Amount sought by U.S. hospitals through court actions against patients 2018-2020
Amount sought by U.S. hospitals through court actions against patients 2018-2020
Total amount sought from patients with unpaid medical bills through court actions taken by some of the largest hospitals in the U.S. from January 1, 2018 to July 31, 2020 (in million U.S. Dollars)*
Basic Statistic U.S. public support for a national Medicare-for-all plan 2017-2020
U.S. public support for a national Medicare-for-all plan 2017-2020
Public support and opposition for a national Medicare-for-all health plan in the U.S. from 2017 to 2020
Basic Statistic Payer and provider strategies for more affordable healthcare U.S. 2019
Payer and provider strategies for more affordable healthcare U.S. 2019
Payer and provider strategies to make healthcare more affordable for U.S. patients as of 2019
Premium Statistic Amount paid out-of-pocket for surprise medical bills in the U.S. as of 2022
Amount paid out-of-pocket for surprise medical bills in the U.S. as of 2022
Distribution of U.S. American adults who have paid out-of-pocket (OOP) for a surprise medical bill received since January 2022, by amount paid

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