title: Bankruptcy is the tip of a medical-debt iceberg.
abstract: Medical bankruptcy, whatever its actual frequency, is an extreme example of a much broader phenomenon. Medical debt is surprisingly common, affecting about twenty-nine million nonelderly adult Americans, with and without health insurance. The presence of medical debt, even for the insured, appears to create health care access barriers akin to those faced by the uninsured. Policymakers, researchers, and medical providers should consider medical debt a risk factor for reduced health access and poorer health status. Simply reducing the number of uninsured Americans would be a hollow policy victory if the problems arising from medical debt persist.
authors.affiliation: Access Project in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. rseifert@accessproject.org
authors.forename: Robert W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Seifert
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rukavina
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016361:Bankruptcy / Q000639:trends*; D002388:Catastrophic Illness / Q000191:economics*; D017047:Cost Sharing; D005190:Family; D005249:Fees and Charges / Q000639:trends; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000639:trends*; D006291:Health Policy; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics; D006302:Health Services Research / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000191:economics; D017057:Medically Uninsured / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D011203:Poverty; D014481:United States