Americans are Delaying Non-Emergency Medical Care in Higher Numbers than Last Year
July 07 2022 - 5:00AM
Business Wire
Paying off medical debt has forced 32% of
Americans with medical debt to skip saving for retirement and 27%
to stop paying other bills
A national survey conducted by Discover Personal Loans has found
that financial stress is impacting how Americans seek and pay for
medical care.
As Americans find themselves living through a turbulent economic
period, many people with medical debt are delaying non-emergency
medical care in higher numbers than they were a year ago.
Specifically, Americans with medical debt are putting off seeing a
specialist (52%), being seen for a sickness (41%) and undergoing
treatment plans recommended by their doctor (31%). Almost half of
Americans with medical debt (47%) say that it will take them more
than a year to pay down their current medical debt.
Paying off medical debt has forced many Americans to forgo other
daily expenses at higher rates than last year, including saving for
retirement or falling behind on credit card payments:
Financial commitments delayed due to
medical debt
2022
2021
Stop spending on dining and
entertainment
48%
35%
Skip vacations
42%
37%
Pay the minimum payment, and no more, for
my credit cards
42%
23%
Skip adding to my emergency savings
36%
28%
Skip saving for retirement
32%
32%
Stop paying other bills
27%
37%
Stop saving for my child’s college
14%
20%
“Consumers are feeling more pressure to juggle their bills in
order to make ends meet,” said Matt Lattman, vice president of
personal loans at Discover. “Skipping things like paying bills,
getting seen for an illness or building an emergency savings fund
can have long-term effects. There are ways to finance some of these
things that will reduce longer term impacts.”
Finances surrounding medical debt are stressful in multiple
ways. For instance, 62% of people with medical debt said that
figuring out how to pay for medical care causes them anxiety, while
32% say that understanding which costs insurance is going to cover
is a source of anxiety.
In addition, Americans have been saving less this year. When
asked how much money they have saved, not including retirement
accounts, the number of respondents with less than $1,000 in
savings jumped from 31% to 39% in 2022. Smaller savings impact
Americans’ ability to pay for unexpected medical expenses, which
can lead to financial hardship. This year, 55% of Americans said
that they are ill-prepared to cover the cost of an unexpected
medical bill, up 12 percentage points from 2021. Therefore,
Americans need alternative solutions to cover medical expenses.
“Personal loans are one of many tools that are available to
consumers to help them through this economic environment,” added
Lattman. “A loan can help you pay off medical debt or cover
unexpected medical expenses while the cost of living is higher due
to inflation.”
About the Survey
A national survey of 1,521 U.S. residents ages 18 and up was
commissioned by Discover and conducted by Dynata (formerly Research
Now/SSI), an independent research firm, between May 18 and May 30,
2022. The maximum margin of sampling error was +/-3 percentage
points with a 95 percent level of confidence.
About Discover
Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) is a digital banking and
payment services company with one of the most recognized brands in
U.S. financial services. Since its inception in 1986, the company
has become one of the largest card issuers in the United States.
The company issues the Discover® card, America's cash rewards
pioneer, and offers private student loans, personal loans, home
loans, checking and savings accounts and certificates of deposit
through its banking business. It operates the Discover Global
Network® comprised of Discover Network, with millions of merchants
and cash access locations; PULSE®, one of the nation's leading
ATM/debit networks; and Diners Club International®, a global
payments network with acceptance around the world. For more
information, visit www.discover.com/company.
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Robert Weiss robertweiss@discover.com 224-405-6304
@Discover_News
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