Written by via vigilantnews.com
Forget the $35 trillion national debt, many Americans have a new source of anxiety: Medical Debt.
Personal medical debt in the United States has reached a shocking milestone: it is now larger than all other sources of personal debt – COMBINED. (1)
The $220 Billion Problem
Estimated at over $220 billion at the end of 2021, at least 41% of Americans have medical or healthcare debt. (2) Worse, 18% of Americans are behind on their payments enough that they are sent to collections. (1)
Unsurprisingly, the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) has done nothing to help the problem. The debt load has continued to surge despite over 90% of the US population having health insurance. (2) High deductibles and limited coverage render many plans utterly useless when Americans need them most.
Dr. Drew Pinsky, a world-renowned television host who has treated tens of thousands of patients, remarks on the sad financial state of the healthcare system:
“The US healthcare system has been taken captive by Big Hospitals, Big Pharma, Insurance, and regulators, which have made it the most expensive healthcare system in the world. Sick patients who enter often face a horrible choice: lose their financial security or refuse treatment.
Worse, they make their decisions in a state of pain and distress while being poorly educated by doctors on various treatment options and their necessity.”
A $2,200 visit to the emergency room.
Nobody plans on being sick, and therefore nobody budgets for illness. Now, even small events like a simple visit to the ER can cause financial hardship. In Joe Biden’s America, the average cost for an ER visit has risen to $2,200 – a massive unplanned expense for most Americans.