Jennifer Mendoza
Research expert covering health, pharma and medtech
Unmet healthcare needs in the U.S. - Statistic & Facts
Unmet healthcare needs, defined as the difference between the healthcare services deemed necessary and those actually received, are an important measure of healthcare accessibility. An international study compared the healthcare systems of 11 high-income countries, and the U.S. emerged as having the most costly and inefficient healthcare system. Furthermore, the U.S. had the worst ranking in every cost-related access measure. The findings were consistent with numerous U.S. polls that emphasized the difficulty that many Americans have in paying for and receiving needed health care. In 2022, nearly three out of ten U.S. adults forewent some form of needed medical care for serious health conditions due to cost reasons in the past year. Various socioeconomic, demographic, and regional factors are also related to barriers to healthcare access and affordability. The likelihood of U.S. adults reporting unmet needs owing to healthcare costs was higher in non-expansion Medicaid states, and the disparity between racial groups was even larger.
