If Kamala Harris and Donald Trump want to earn the votes of older adults, they better pay attention to health care. A recent Pew Research Center poll shows that health care affordability tops the list of concerns for American voters—ahead of worries about the federal budget, immigration, and gun violence. Adults over 50 made up more than half of voters in the 2020 election, making the concerns of this key demographic some of the most critical to the upcoming presidential election.
A new study conducted by the University of Michigan’s Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation , using data from the National Poll on Healthy Aging conducted in February and March 2024, shows the health-related issues most worrying to older adults. Health care and insurance costs among top concerns Concerns about health care and health insurance costs made up five of the six top issues from a list of 26. Respondents said they were very worried about the cost of home care, assisted living, and nursing home care (56%); the cost of medical care (56%); the cost of prescription medications (54%); financial scams and fraud (53%); and the cost of health insurance and Medicare (52%).
“The cost of health care and the need for health care are both so substantial for older adults in the U.S.,” says the study’s lead author Dr.
John Z. Ayanian, director of the Institute of Healthcare Policy and Innovation. “We’ve had some great advances in helping people manage chronic conditions and reduce t.