Big Racial Disparities

Black adults are much more likely than white adults to have health care debt and more likely to suffer serious consequences.

Action Black White
Has current health care debt 56% 37%
Denied care because of debt* 19% 10%
Taken out a loan because of health care debt* 30% 17%
Changed living situation because of debt, such as moving in with friends or family* 20% 10%
Contacted by a collection agency* 56% 37%

Note: *Share of adults with current debt who say they or someone in their household has experienced this over the past five years

Source: KFF Health Care Debt Survey of 2,375 U.S. adults, including 1,674 with current or past debt from medical or dental bills, conducted Feb. 25 through March 20. The margin of sampling error for the overall sample is 3 percentage points.

Credit: Alyson Hurt/NPR and Noam N. Levey/KHN