7 in 10 women are worried about the cost of medical bills

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Two-thirds of Americans, including more than 7 in 10 women, are worried about their ability to pay medical bills, according to polling from The 19th and SurveyMonkey. 

It’s not just medical bills: Women are also more worried than men about paying for groceries, child care, housing and retirement, the polling finds. But the stress that medical bills place on Americans is particularly relevant as the fight over health care costs keeps the government shuttered. 

The federal government has been shut down since October 1, when funding lapsed amid a fight focused on health insurance subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that are set to expire. The Republican-led House has approved a measure that would fund the government but not extend those subsidies, but it hasn’t been able to pass the Senate, where Republicans need Democrats to reach the 60-vote threshold. Democrats have said that Republicans have not been willing to negotiate with them on the ACA subsidies, while Republicans say they can discuss the matter after the government is open, without any change to their expiration.

For many Americans, the worries about medical bills are acute: Forty-one percent of women say they’re very worried about paying medical bills, versus 33 percent of men. Latinas and Black women — two groups whose average income lags that of White women as well as men — report the highest levels of concern, with 47 percent saying they’re very worried. 

There’s a gender gap within racial and ethnic groups, as well: 

• 69 percent of White women are worried, 10 points more than White men. 
• 72 percent of Black women are worried, six points more than Black men. 
• 73 percent of Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women are worried, five points more than AAPI men.
• 73 percent of Latinas are worried, four points more than Latino men.

LGBTQ+ people are also more worried than non-LGBTQ+ people; 80 percent of LGBTQ+ are worried about paying for medical bills, with more than half (54 percent) who say they’re very worried. 

SurveyMonkey conducted this poll online from September 8 to 15 among a national sample of 20,807 U.S. adults, with a modeled error estimate of plus or minus 1.0 percentage points.

KFF, a nonpartisan health policy organization, has found that red states would be hit especially hard by the expiring tax credits that help people buy their own health insurance via the ACA Marketplace. KFF’s own poll last week showed 78 percent of Americans support extending the credits.