The majority of Americans say the economy is the most important concern facing the U.S. today, ahead of other issues such as immigration, racism and terrorism, according to a recent Gallup poll. Healthcare costs are the most worrying economic issue for Americans, a GOBankingRates Financial Burdens Survey found.
"Healthcare costs impact every individual, which makes it a huge concern for the country as a whole," said Kristen Bonner, the research lead for GOBankingRates Financial Burdens Survey. "Every age group, with the exception of people under 24 years old and people over 65, chose healthcare costs as most significant more than any other factor."
Here are five key findings from the survey.
1. Healthcare costs were selected as the biggest financial burden on the U.S. economy 31 percent of the time, nearly twice as often as any other option. Other economic burdens included in the survey were Social Security benefits, higher education costs, tax increases, income inequality and military spending.
2. When asked to rank economic issues on a scale from one (most significant) to six (least significant), respondents ranked healthcare costs higher than any other issue most frequently, giving it an average rank of 2.45.
3. Social Security benefits are the second biggest economic burden, indicated by 16 percent of survey respondents. Social Security benefits were given an average ranking of 3.34 as a financial burden on the U.S. economy. Military spending was ranked the least significant economic issue, with a ranking of 4.13. Just 11 percent of respondents indicated military spending was the No. 1 economic burden.
4. The survey found people perceive different economic issues as more burdensome depending on their life stage and age, suggesting that Americans are so strained by immediate financial concerns that they have little room to worry about other financial burdens that impact them less directly. For instance, among millennials (ages 18 to 34), those between 18 and 24 are most likely concerned with costs related to their education. College-aged young adults were the only age group that didn't rank healthcare costs as the most significant burden for the U.S. economy. Older millennials are more concerned with income inequality, choosing it as their top economic concern 23.1 percent of the time.
5. Generation X'ers and baby boomers ranked healthcare costs as the top economic burden, while seniors over 65 are most concerned with Social Security benefits.