Many Americans Can’t Access Affordable Health Care, Survey Suggests

Thirty-five percent of Americans surveyed said they are unable to access affordable, quality health care when needed — a percentage that has risen in recent years.¹

The survey — West Health-Gallup Healthcare Indices Survey — was completed by a nationally representative sample of 6296 adults from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Patients completed the survey online or via mail in the last 2 months of 2024.

Results showed that, in 2024, 35% of respondents could not access quality, affordable health care when needed — an increase from 29% in 2021. Respondents from households earning less than $24,000 per year were hardest hit, with 64% unable to access needed care in 2024, an increase from 53% in 2021.

Among households earning $24,000 to less than $48,000, 57% of respondents were unable to access care in 2024, which was an increase from 46% in 2021. The percentage of respondents who could not access quality, affordable health care when needed did not change much over time for those with annual household incomes of $48,000 or higher.

The survey also revealed an increase in respondents who were “cost desperate,” which was defined as lacking access to quality, affordable care and a recent inability to pay for needed care and medicine. The percent of cost-desperate respondents rose from 8% in 2021 to 11% in 2024.

The percentage of cost-desperate individuals did not change much over time for respondents with annual household incomes of $48,000 or higher. However, for respondents with annual household incomes of $24,000 to less than $48,000, the percentage of cost-desperate respondents rose from 13% in 2021 to 19% in 2024. And for households with annual incomes below $24,000, the percentage of cost-desperate respondents rose from 14% to 25%.

The percentage of cost-desperate respondents did not increase among White adults (8% in 2021 and 2024) but rose for Black adults (9% to 14%) and Hispanic adults (10% to 18%). Other races/ethnicities were not analyzed.

“The rising trajectory in the inability to pay for health care is a disturbing trend that is likely to continue and even accelerate,” Tim Lash, president of West Health Policy Center in Washington, DC, said in a statement.² “Policy action at both the state and federal level is urgently needed, or even more Americans will have to go without treatment or be forced to make painful tradeoffs between paying for medical care or paying for other necessities. The human and economic costs are enormous.”

Disclosures: No disclosure information was provided.