Many Americans say they are dipping into savings accounts and reducing retirement
savings to pay for rising healthcare costs, according to a survey by the Employee
Benefit Research Institute.
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Download Now "Americans are coping with the rising cost of health care in a variety
of ways, but it is clear that rising health costs are causing financial pain
among many, and are leading to a reduction in savings in general-and retirement
savings in particular," says Dallas Salisbury, chief executive officer
of EBRI.
One-quarter of those experiencing cost increases say they have reduced retirement
savings contributions because of growing medical bills. Nearly 2 in 10 say medical
bills are making it more difficult to pay for necessities like food and housing.
Three in 10 say such costs have made it more difficult to pay other bills.
The survey found that Americans, while satisfied about the quality of care
they are receiving currrently, are becoming more dissatisfied with the healthcare
system as a whole and are increasingly concerned about their ability to afford
quality health care in the future.
Twenty-two percent of respondents rank health care as the most critical issue
in the country, compared with 21 percent for terrorism/national security, 17
percent for the economy, 16 percent for the war in Iraq, and 13 percent for
education.
The survey found that most Americans are quite satisfied with the care they
are currently receiving. Among those who received care within the two years
prior to the survey, a quarter are not at all satisfied with the cost of their
health insurance (up from 15 percent in 1998), and 28 percent are equally dissatisfied
with costs not met by insurance. That's up from 20 percent in 1998.
More than two-thirds (67 percent) of those with health insurance are satisfied
with the employment-based coverage they have, and 20 percent say they'd be willing
to take a pay cut in return for more comprehensive coverage. As earlier surveys
have found, the 2004 survey also shows that health insurance remains by far
the most popular employee benefit.