Objective:

To analyze the medical and educational debt of U.S. health care workers compared to other workers.

Approach:

• Study Design: Cross-sectional study using data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) from 2018 to 2021.
• Participants: 8,018 health care workers (weighted n = 12.6 million) and 53,346 other workers (weighted n = 83.2 million).
• Data Analysis: Logistic regression models estimated associations between indebtedness and various demographic and occupational variables.

Key Findings:

• 13.9% of health care workers reported medical debt vs. 11.1% of other workers.
• Mean medical debt for health care workers was $1,567, totaling $19.8 billion nationally.
• 26.7% of health care workers reported educational debt vs. 16.5% of other workers, with an average debt of $10,642, totaling $134.4 billion nationally.
• Medical debt was more prevalent among women (15.3%) and Black workers (19.7%).
• Educational debt was disproportionately higher among Black and younger health care workers.

Interpretation:

Limitations:

• Potential recall bias from self-reported data.
• Possible underestimation of debt size due to top coding.
• Lack of data on debt creditors.

Conclusion:

Sources:

• JAMA Health Forum