Fewer Americans struggle to pay their medical bills thanks to a better economy and the increase in the number of previously uninsured people gaining health insurance through the Affordable Care Act.
The number of people whose families have difficulty paying medical bills dropped 22% in the last five years, according to a report (PDF) from the National Center for Health Statistics.
The report found:
- The number of people younger than 65 who were in families having problems paying medical bills decreased, from 56.5 million in 2011 to 43.8 million in the first six months of 2016.
- The percentage of children ages 0 to 17 who were in families having problems paying medical bills decreased, from 23% in 2011 to 17.6% in the first six months of 2016. Until this year, children in that age group were more likely than adults ages 18 to 64 to be in families having problems paying medical bills.
- In the first six months of 2016, among individuals younger than 65, 28.5% of those who were uninsured, 21.1% of those who had public coverage and 12.6% of those who had private coverage were in families having problems paying medical bills in the past 12 months.
#STATOFTHEDAY 17.6 % of U.S. children aged 0-17 years old live in families having problems paying #MedicalBills https://t.co/UOFUURa5TR
— NCHS (@NCHStats) November 30, 2016
The findings show that having insurance coverage can determine whether people can pay their medical bills, Lynn Quincy, director of the Healthcare Value Hub at the Consumers Union, told NPR. She credited the Affordable Care Act as the reason more people can pay their medical bills.
"The effect on families is profound," Quincy said. "Healthcare costs are a top financial concern for families, far above other financial concerns."
Despite the latest findings, a report earlier this year found that having health insurance doesn’t guarantee that Americans won’t face medical debt. One in five working-age Americans with health insurance said in a Kaiser Family Foundation and New York Times survey that they have problems paying their medical bills, often with significant financial and personal consequences. Of those who were insured when they incurred medical bills, 75% said the amount they had to pay for copays, deductibles or coinsurance was more than they could afford.