The affordability of healthcare continues to be a growing concern for Americans, according to a new report released by the Pew Research Center.
With economic factors dominating respondents’ ranking of the biggest problems facing society in the United States, health issues and their associated costs were front and center.
According to Pew, 73 percent of adults polled described healthcare affordability as a “very big problem” for the nation, an increase of 6 percent on the same survey in February of last year.
The 2025 poll itself saw an increase of 10 percent on the previous year, putting the extent of the problem and its impact on the minds, and bank balances, of Americans into sharper focus.
The research found that most Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (85%) classified the matter as a “very big problem,” marking an increase of 12 percent from the previous results.
Around 60 percent of Republicans and those leaning toward the GOP felt the same way, which was roughly the same as last year, but an increase from between 2020–24.
Piling on the pain for those facing soaring costs related to traditional health insurance, is spiraling inflation, which 66 percent of those surveyed identified as a major stressor, up three percent from 2025.
The Pew research was conducted nationwide in the week of April 20–26 and polled 5,103 U.S. adults.
Per Pew, the amount of money in politics was identified as the biggest problem facing America, followed by health care affordability, inflation, party dynamics in Washington, the federal budget deficit, and drug addiction.
“Politicians aren’t stupid: they read the polls and they know that their voters are very concerned about affordability and economic policy,” Dan Schnur, who teaches political communications at the University of California, Berkeley and at the University of Southern California, told FOX26 news. “The problem is that they’re not able to do very much about (it) in a gridlocked hyper-partisan system. So instead of action, they resort to finger-pointing and blame-laying, which only makes those voters even more cynical.”
A feature in the Pennsylvania Independent highlighted the direct effect that high healthcare prices have been having on residents in its area.
The publication told the story of Allentown homecare worker Lynn Weidmer, whose healthcare premium rose from $400 to $700 a month in January following the expiration of Affordable Care Act tax credits.
“Even with my insurance, I always have a bill,” Weidner said. “It’s not like I ever don’t have medical debt. I just put it in a payment plan at the hospital, and then I pay a little bit all the time because when the beginning of the year starts and my deductible restarts, it all goes right back onto the payment plan. So I just always have a revolving door of medical debt.”
The Pew research backs up a KFF poll from earlier this year that identified health costs at the top of the public’s list of affordability worries.
Reducing out-of-pocket costs was the most important change respondents would like to see according to the KFF research, named by 46 percent of insurance adults. Furthermore, around 90 percent said the issue would have an impact on whether they would vote in the 2026 midterms elections, and who they would vote for.
For some, the opportunities provided by health care sharing ministries (HCSMs) may help lessen the burden of making sure their families are protected. Health share programs are not insurance plans, but can offer an affordable alternative to health insurance, funded mostly through the monthly contributions of its members.
Christopher Jin, president of one such program – WeShare Health by UHSM – insisted the HCSM market could provide an increasingly attractive boost to those feeling let down by standard health care options.
“Americans have been failed by the traditional health insurance marketplace,” Jin said. “A lot of people still don’t realize there may be alternative options out there that can give them what they are looking for, without the exorbitant price tag.”