WASHINGTON, D.C.: About one-third of Americans cut spending on food, utilities or other basic expenses in 2025 in order to pay for healthcare, according to research released on Thursday by the West Health-Gallup Center.

The nationally representative survey, conducted between June and August 2025, polled nearly 20,000 adults across all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. It found that 33 percent of respondents had made at least one trade-off in everyday spending to cover healthcare costs.

The burden was significantly higher among people without health insurance. Among uninsured respondents, 62 percent reported making at least one financial sacrifice to afford healthcare. That included 32 percent who reported borrowing money and 24 percent who said they had prolonged their current medication.

Among Americans with health insurance, nearly three in ten said they had made at least one sacrifice to cover healthcare costs.

Rising expenses appear to be contributing to the strain. Most Americans with private health insurance are facing higher premiums and greater out-of-pocket costs in 2026. Millions enrolled in government-subsidized Affordable Care Act plans are also seeing costs rise after additional subsidies introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic expired.

"We're actually finding that people are reporting higher incidences of metabolic disease or depression and anxiety. We're not getting healthier as a society, we're actually getting sicker, and the healthcare cost is going up on top of it," said Timothy Lash, president of West Health Policy Center, a nonprofit focused on healthcare and aging.

A separate survey released alongside the report suggests healthcare costs are influencing broader life decisions.

In a poll of 5,660 U.S. adults conducted primarily through Gallup's panel between October and December last year, respondents said they had delayed major life changes within the past four years because of healthcare costs.

These included decisions such as buying a home or taking a vacation.

Nearly nine percent of respondents said they had postponed retirement due to healthcare expenses, while roughly twice as many said healthcare costs had delayed a job switch.