Pandemic, Income Loss Put Many in Medical Debt
Nearly half of adults in the United States diagnosed with COVID-19 or who lost income during the pandemic struggled to keep up with medical bills, according to a recent survey by the Commonwealth Fund. These financial hardships were particularly common among people of color, with 55 percent of Black adults and 44 percent of Hispanic adults surveyed reporting problems with medical bills and debt, compared to one-third of White adults. One-third of adults surveyed said their income fell during the pandemic, but this was true for 44 percent of Black adults and 45 percent of Hispanic adults. Even those with health insurance were affected, with more than one-third of insured adults indicating that they were paying off medical debt. The research also showed that just over one-third of working-age adults with employer-based health insurance coverage reported medical bill or debt problems, as did 46 percent of those with individual and marketplace plans.