President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump spent a lot of time during Thursday night’s debate trying to claim credit to lower the high cost of insulin.
But the back-and-forth over insulin pricing has failed to address a key issue many Americans are concerned about: the exorbitant cost of healthcare.
“There is a health care affordability crisis in the United States, and that stark fact was completely absent from the presidential debate,” said Lawrence Gostin, director of Georgetown University’s O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law.
February Request by KFF, Unexpected medical bills and health care costs top the list of people’s financial worries, and nearly three-quarters of the public say they are at least somewhat worried, a nonprofit group that researches health policy issues said. to be able to pay unexpected medical bills or health care costs for themselves and their families.
“It was a big swing and miss,” KFF president and CEO Drew Altman said of the debate. “There has been a significant lack of focus on health care and, more importantly, health care costs, which is an issue that absolutely concerns voters.”
People in the United States pays almost twice as much for health care But the country’s health outcomes are lower than most of its peers, Gostin said.
Moreover, healthcare costs in America continue to rise.
According to a report released this month, national health care spending on doctors, hospital services and prescription drug costs is projected to grow to almost $4.8 trillion in 2023, growing faster than projected growth in the overall economy. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Arthur Kaplan, head of medical ethics at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York, said Biden and Trump’s focus on insulin is likely to appeal to a large core of diabetic voters who have advocated for lower insulin prices for years. According to the report, more than 8 million Americans use insulin to survive American Diabetes Association.
Still, Kaplan said, insulin and drug costs in general are only one component of the overall health care system.
“It was a huge missed opportunity,” Kaplan said. “Drug costs are a problem, but so are hospital costs and nursing home costs. Lowering drug prices helps, but it is far from solving our cost problems.”
Altman said there will be another opportunity for Biden and Trump to address health care costs during the next presidential debate scheduled for September.
Outside the debate stage, Altman said he expects Biden to continue to push health care costs because it’s an issue where the president has an advantage over Trump.
Other KFF survey A survey published in May found that more independent voters trust Biden than Trump when it comes to many areas of health care, including health care spending.
“Even though it’s getting little or no attention, it’s going to be a continuing focus for Biden and the Democrats,” Altman said. “I expect Trump to be silent on this issue.”