Healthcare Costs Are Killing the American Dream

Potential homebuyers are putting the American Dream on hold to pay for rising healthcare costs for themselves and loved ones. With health insurance premiums, out-of-pocket costs, and expensive price tags on treatment, many Americans must forgo buying houses, marrying and having children in order to afford medical care averaging at $5,000 per person per year. 

In the U.S. today, it only takes a single medical issue to drain your bank account and force you to put major life events on hold.

For Sam, who asked to be identified by a pseudonym, helping a loved one cope with substance abuse wiped out tens of thousands in savings, along with any financial security. “I have pretty good health coverage (or so I thought), and I’m thankful for it or else I’d probably be over $100,000 in debt,” Sam, a thirty-something, tells CNBC Make It.

But even with good health insurance, the bills piled up. Between the insurance deductible and the plan’s out-of-pocket maximums, as well as treatments and expenses like travel that were not covered, Sam blew through savings and ended up putting many expenses on a credit card

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