Debt Keeping People from the Doctor’s Office

http://blog.credit.com/2013/05/debt-keeping-people-from-the-doctors-office/

 

 

 

The high cost of healthcare and the risk of taking on too much debt is causing many people to avoid seeking even routine care in an effort to save money.

Consumers with credit card and medical debt are far less likely to seek medical attention for situations that can sometimes be quite serious, according to a new study in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior. In all, nearly six in 10 people who skipped out on healthcare of some kind were more likely to have medical debt than the roughly 20 percent who did not, and also tended to have far more of it. In all, the average balance owed by those with medical debt who avoided care was $8,889, compared with the $2,783 who did not do so.

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