The Burrow
Apr 29, 2025
It’s important to take care of our health and seek treatment when something’s wrong, but what do you do when you can’t afford the cost?
Would you be willing to go into debt for medical expenses?
As experts in understanding how comparing health insurance can support lower medical bills, we ran a survey in Australia, Canada and the United States. This survey targeted a nationally representative mix of around 1,000 adults in each country, asking if they had ever gone into medical debt, what they would be willing to go into debt for, and how much debt they were in.
Join us as we take a look at the charts.
Getting into debt for medical expenses, either for oneself or a loved one, can add stress at an already stressful time. Fortunately, according to the survey results, most people do not incur debt for medical expenses.
Americans were more likely to be in debt for medical bills, with 28% of respondents saying they owed money to pay for healthcare costs. Canadians were less likely at 17%, while Australians were the least likely to be in medical debt, with only 12% of Australians saying they had done so to pay medical fees.
Given that America doesn’t have a public health system like Canada and Australia, it isn’t surprising that they were the most likely to be in debt for healthcare costs – especially given the infamously high expenses for healthcare in the States.
| Survey response | Australia | Canada | USA |
| Have gone into medical debt | 12% | 17% | 28% |
| Have not gone into medical debt | 88% | 83% | 72% |
The top issues that people go into medical debt for are different across countries. In Australia, the most common medical expense people incurred debt for was specialist treatment and consultations, accounting for 36% of Aussies with medical debt. This was followed by medically necessary elective surgery at 30% and dental work at 29%, with expensive prescriptions close behind at 27%.
In Canada, the number one cause of medical debt was dental work at 36%, followed by expensive medication at 32% and then life-threatening emergency surgery at 25%.
In America dental work was also the primary cause at 34%, followed by specialist appointments and treatment at 33% and expensive medication at 31%.
Respondents were also asked what medical issue they would hypothetically go into debt for, and there was one clear winner – respondents in every country agreed they would go into debt to pay for life-threatening emergency surgery, either for themselves or a loved one.
| Medical issues that lead to medical debt | Australia | Canada | USA |
| Specialist treatment or consultations | 36% | 22% | 33% |
| Medically necessary elective surgery | 30% | 21% | 27% |
| Dental work | 29% | 36% | 34% |
| Expensive prescription medication | 27% | 32% | 31% |
| Life-threatening emergency surgery | 19% | 25% | 26% |
| Mental health care | 12% | 17% | 15% |
| Cosmetic surgery | 11% | 8% | 8% |
| Physical therapy/rehabilitation | 9% | 12% | 13% |
Note: Respondents could select more than one option, so percentages do not total to 100%.
Interestingly, more than a quarter of respondents in each nation said they would not be willing to go into debt for medical expenses. This was highest in Australia and America, with 28% of respondents, followed by Canada at 25%.
Given the wide range of potential healthcare bills, it’s possible to only have a few hundred dollars in debt, to tens of thousands. Interestingly, the most common amount of debt for each nation surveyed was the same: between $1,000 and $5,000 (in each country’s respective local currency). This accounted for 23% of Australians, 22% of Canadians, and 33% of Americans with medical debt.
The next most common amount of debt for Australians and Americans was more expensive at $5,000 to $10,000 (22% for Australians and 17% for Americans), while in Canada, the next most common was $500 to $1,000 at 20%. Canadians and Americans were slightly more likely to have more than $100,000 in medical debt, compared to 2% of Australians.
As with before, the survey asked how much debt people would be willing to hypothetically take on to pay for medical expenses for themselves or a loved one, but for Canadians and Americans it was the same: $1,000 to $5,000 (23% and 20% respectively). Interestingly, Australians were more willing to take on a higher amount of debt at $5,000 to $10,000 (24%).
The amount of people willing to take on higher amounts of debt dropped steadily the more expensive the amount, but there was an interesting little spike at the most expensive level. Americans were the most likely to take on $100,000+ debt at 9%, followed by Canada at 7% and Australia at 6%.
| Amount of health debt | Australia | Canada | USA |
| $0-$100 | 0% | 6% | 5% |
| $101-$250 | 7% | 7% | 5% |
| $251-$500 | 12% | 14% | 5% |
| $501-$1,000 | 19% | 20% | 14% |
| $1,001-$5,000 | 23% | 22% | 33% |
| $5,001-$10,000 | 22% | 18% | 17% |
| $10,001-$20,000 | 4% | 4% | 11% |
| $20,001-$50,000 | 8% | 5% | 5% |
| $50,001-$100,000 | 4% | 1% | 2% |
| $100,000+ | 2% | 3% | 3% |
Note: respondents could select more than one option, so percentages do not total to 100%.
Overall, most survey respondents indicated they were willing to take on some level of medical debt, with only 5% of Australians and Canadians saying they would not be willing to take on any healthcare-related debts, and Americans were barely more willing at 6%.
In Australia, health insurance is designed to help cover the cost of medical expenses covered by the policy, helping make individual treatments, surgeries, consultations and other related expenses more affordable. Compare the Market’s Executive General Manager of Health, Steven Spicer, explains how, and what to watch out for.
“By paying an annual, monthly, or weekly fee, you can have a private health insurance policy to help pay for a range of medical expenses when you need them. There is a wide range of policies available in Australia, with differing levels of cover,” Mr Spicer said.
“It’s important to understand what treatments are covered by the policy, and if you’re purchasing a policy to treat a condition you already have, this is typically defined as a pre-existing condition, and you’ll usually have to wait a set number of months before you can claim treatment costs for that medical issue.
“There’s a range of benefits to private health insurance, and it gives customers greater choice over their healthcare than if they relied solely on Australia’s public system. Whether people already have insurance or are considering purchasing it, comparing available policies beforehand can help people weigh up the differing coverage benefits and prices before they buy.”
Compare the Market commissioned PureProfile to survey 1,012 Australian, 1,010 Canadian and 1,013 American adults in a demographically representative survey for each nation in January 2025.