- Nearly half of millennials have delayed medical or dental care because of their finances, according to a new survey by Insider and Morning Consult.
- Millennials are dealing with wage stagnation and rising healthcare costs — a bad combination.
- Being able to afford healthcare is especially important for a generation among which depression and “deaths of despair” are on the rise.
- Read more personal finance coverage.
Nearly half of millennials have delayed medical care because they can’t afford it.
That’s according to a new survey by Insider and Morning Consult that polled 2,096 Americans about their financial health, debt, and earnings for a new series, “The State of Our Money.” More than 670 respondents were millennials, defined as ages 23 to 38 in 2019.
The survey found that 49% of millennials have had to delay medical or dental care as a result of their finances. That’s more than any other generation who responded to the question. Despite having three decades more of life, only 42% of boomers said they’d had to do that.
Millennials are already facing financial hurdles that their parents didn’t — many entered a tough job market during the Great Recession, which also made it difficult for them to save.
They’re also experiencing wage stagnation. Americans ages 25 to 34 on average have seen incomes increase by just $29 since 1974 when adjusted for inflation, according to a SuperMoney report that analyzed US Census Bureau data. That year, they were earning an average of $35,426. By 2017, that rose to a mere $35,455.
That hasn’t kept up with climbing health care costs. National health care costs per person have increased by $9,000 since 1970, according to the SuperMoney report.
Being able to afford healthcare is more important than ever for millennials who need to find help for their mental health. Depression and “deaths of despair” are on the rise among the generation, many of whom suffer from loneliness, money stress, and burnout in the workplace.
While millennials are more likely than previous generations to attend therapy, one in five millennials diagnosed with major depression don’t seek treatment, according to a Blue Cross report. Rising healthcare costs could be at play here.
All of this data may help explain why the majority of millennials are opening up to socialism — in hopes of seeing policies that will help make healthcare more affordable.
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