From The Commonwealth Fund: A new survey of adults in the U.S. and 10 other high-income countries finds that fewer Americans are reporting that cost is a barrier to getting care. In 2016, 33 percent of U.S. adults said they did not fill a prescription, see a doctor when sick, or get recommended care because of the cost, down from 37 percent in 2013 (Exhibit 1). Adults with incomes of less than $25,000 per year saw a particularly large decline of 8 percentage points. These findings align with other national studies showing that the rate of cost-related access problems has been falling, particularly for lower-income Americans, since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Despite these gains, however, the new study reveals that the U.S. still has a long way to go compared to other high-income nations. Only 13 percent of adults outside the U.S.—and just 7 percent of adults in the U.K. and Germany—report a cost-related access problem.
CMWF Study Finds Americans Cost Barrier Decreasing, But More Improvement Needed
More from United StatesMore posts in United States »
- AHRQ Stats: Costliest Hospital Stays
- Report: Only 5% of Hospitals Fully Compliant With Price Transparency Rule
- Report Finds Black Patients Experience Higher Rates of Adverse Safety Events Than White Patients at Same Hospital
- CMS New OPPS Proposed Rule Includes Monetary Penalty for Hospitals Not Complying With Price Transparency Rule
- VA Hospitals Patient Experience Star Ratings Published on Medicare Care Compare