Mar 27, 2024

Why Americans are drowning in medical debt

z_wei/Getty Images

Medical debt is the leading cause of personal bankruptcy in America. How did we get here?

Segments From this episode

The ripple effects of the Baltimore bridge incident

by Henry Epp

In the first a day after a disabled container ship hit and destroyed the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore, supply chains are already under stress. Companies are scrambling to reroute goods, and other ports on the East Coast could benefit.

Listen Now

Health and Wealth

Health and Wealth: Why Americans are drowning in medical debt

by David Brancaccio , Meredith Garretson and Kelly Silvera

Mar 27, 2024

Almost a third of all working adults in the United States are carrying some kind of medical debt — that’s about 15% of all U.S. households.

Medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy in the United States and affects almost a third of working Americans.

DNY59/Getty Images

LISTEN

EMBED

The team

David Brancaccio Host

Leanna Byrne Host, BBC

Kelly Silvera Executive Producer

Meredith Garretson Morbey Senior Producer

Erika Soderstrom Producer

Alex Schroeder Producer

Ariana Rosas Producer

Dylan Miettinen Digital Producer

Jesson Duller Media Producer

Nic Perez Director/Producer

James Graham Producer, BBC

Jo Critcher Producer, BBC

Naomi Rainey Producer, BBC

Lis Mahy Producer, BBC

Latest Episodes From Our Shows

5:21 PM PDT