Becker's Healthcare December 22, 2025
A new analysis suggests the cumulative financial strain of healthcare is more widespread than annual snapshots indicate — and most Americans will experience unaffordable costs during their lifetimes.
The study, published Dec. 22 in JAMA Internal Medicine, was conducted by researchers from Harvard Medical School in Boston, the City University of New York’s Hunter College and Public Citizen’s Health Research Group. Using longitudinal data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (2018-2022), the team tracked 12,645 U.S. adults and analyzed their experiences with several indicators of healthcare financial strain.
The researchers examined three specific burdens: “cost burden” (out-of-pocket costs exceeding 10% of family income, or 5% for low-income households); “catastrophic cost burden” (out-of-pocket costs exceeding 40% of post-subsistence income); and “foregone...
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