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The US Capitol in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. <\/p>\n
Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Health costs have emerged as the top financial anxiety for U.S. households<\/a>, according to a new survey. It\u2019s a dynamic that experts say could pose a threat to the Republican majority in Congress during this year\u2019s midterm elections, in which affordability is expected to be a key focus<\/a> for voters. <\/p>\n Two out of 3 Americans surveyed, 66%, are worried about paying for health care<\/a> \u2014 more than other household necessities such as utilities, food and groceries, housing and rent, and gasoline and transportation, according to a poll<\/a> published Thursday by KFF, a nonpartisan health policy research group. <\/p>\n Health care includes the cost of health insurance and out-of-pocket expenses for office visits and prescription drugs, for example, according to KFF. <\/p>\n Among those concerned about health costs, 32% said they are \u201cvery worried\u201d and 34% are \u201csomewhat worried.\u201d KFF surveyed 1,426 U.S. adults earlier this month.<\/p>\n \u201cThis could very well be the No. 1 issue for Americans at the polls in November,\u201d said Nick Fabrizio, a health policy expert and associate teaching professor at Cornell University.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n KFF conducted its poll from Jan. 13 to Jan. 20, just weeks after the expiration of enhanced federal premium subsidies<\/a> for health insurance purchased on the Affordable Care Act marketplace. <\/p>\n About 22 million people \u2014 over 90% of ACA enrollees \u2014 received those enhanced subsidies in 2025. KFF estimates the average recipient will see their insurance premiums more than double this year as a result<\/a>, to $1,904 per month from $888.<\/p>\n Democrats have pushed to extend the subsidies, but a majority of Republicans in Congress have so far stymied those efforts. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Health care typically ranks as a \u201csecond-tier election issue\u201d in KFF\u2019s regular polling, said Shannon Schumacher, a senior survey analyst.<\/p>\n But not this year, she said. <\/p>\n One likely reason: Most adults said their health-care costs have risen in the past year, including a \u201csubstantial share\u201d \u2014 over 20% \u2014 who said their health costs have grown at a faster rate than other expenses like utilities or food, KFF found. <\/p>\n<\/div>\nHealth care perceptions come as ACA subsidies expire<\/h2>\n