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Americans putting off medical care more than ever due to cost: Poll

This picture shows an emergency sign pointing to the entrance at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California, USA, March 23, 2017. (File photo by Reuters)

A recent poll has revealed that more Americans than ever before are putting off their medical care needs due to the skyrocketing cost of the services.

The new Gallup 2022 poll, published on Tuesday, found that 38 percent of participants said they have put off scheduled medical care payments due to cost.

The new result showed a 12-point increase from the past two years.

The latest Gallup poll showed a new high with the previous high in 2014 and 2019, when 33 percent of those surveyed said that they have postponed scheduled medical care payments due to cost. Twenty-seven percent of respondents said that the delayed treatment in their family was for a condition that was considered to be “very” or “somewhat” serious, while 11 percent of those surveyed said the delayed treatment was for a condition considered to be “not very” or “not at all” serious.

Among different economic categories, 34 percent of respondents in the lower-income group said that they postponed medical care treatment for a very or somewhat serious condition, while 29 percent of respondents in the middle-income group said the same thing. Eighteen percent of respondents in the upper-income group said that they postponed medical care treatment for a very or somewhat serious condition.

Across age groups, 35 percent of respondents who are 18 to 49 years old said that they postponed medical care treatment for a very or somewhat serious condition, and 25 percent of respondents who are 50 to 65 years old also said the same.

Thirty-two percent of male respondents said that they postponed medical care treatment for a very or somewhat serious condition, while 20 percent of female respondents said the same thing.

The Gallup poll was conducted from Nov. 9 to Dec. 2 with a total of 1,020 respondents participating in the survey. The poll’s margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The poll comes amid an unprecedented inflation rate in the US with many Americans citing unbridled prices as one of the most important issues faced by the nation.

In the meantime, the cost of services in the United States has skyrocketed to new highs, unprecedented in decades.

According to statistics cited in reports, the price of shelter has increased its most in nearly 30 years in the US while the price of services reached its highest rate in 40 years.


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