The Hidden Costs of Healthcare

The infographic below illustrates the range of financial sacrifices Americans are making to afford care. These insights capture both the scale of the affordability crisis and the everyday realities it creates for millions of American households. 

Key Takeaways: 

• With approximately 82 million U.S. adults, roughly 1 in 3 adults, who made at least one tradeoff to afford care, healthcare affordability extends beyond a health issue and poses broader societal and economic challenges.  

• In 2025,  Americans reported cutting back on utilities, prolonging medication doses, or borrowing money to afford healthcare. 

• Prolonging current prescriptions and borrowing money were the most common practices to pay for healthcare, both at 15% of respondents. Another 9% reported cutting back on utilities to afford healthcare.  

About the Data: 

The West Health – Gallup partnership highlights the real-world impact of healthcare costs, revealing the tradeoffs many Americans make to afford care. Learn more about the findings at westhealth.gallup.com. 

Since 2021, West Health and Gallup have tracked healthcare affordability, calling attention to the millions of Americans who either make costly tradeoffs or forgo care and medication altogether. Recent findings indicate that healthcare affordability has grown more severe in recent year.

Sources: 

• WestHealth – Gallup Center on Healthcare in America

• State Healthcare Rankings: The Methods Behind the Metrics