Health Insurance Literacy and Medical Debt in Middle-Age Americans

Area of Science:

• Health Economics
• Health Services Research
• Medical Sociology

Background:

• Health insurance literacy (HIL) is crucial for managing medical financial burdens, particularly for vulnerable populations.
• Middle-aged Americans face increasing health challenges and potential medical debt.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between health insurance literacy (HIL), health insurance characteristics, and medical debt.
• To analyze these relationships in a sample of middle-aged Americans (50-64 years).

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from the 2015-2016 Health Reform Monitoring Survey.
• Employed linear and generalized linear regression analyses on 8,042 participants aged 50-64.

Main Results:

• Higher HIL was associated with reduced odds of medical debt (OR=0.97), though 13.8% risk remained at the highest HIL.
• Public insurance, higher deductibles, and out-of-pocket costs correlated with increased medical debt.
• HIL scores showed minimal differences across insurance types but were lower with higher deductibles.

Conclusions:

• HIL significantly impacts medical debt, but is insufficient alone to eliminate it.
• Addressing healthcare affordability and cost-sharing alongside HIL is essential for mitigating medical debt.
• The study highlights the need for comprehensive strategies to combat medical financial distress in middle-aged adults.