Staying healthy has continued to grow more expensive in the U.S., with the consumer price index for medical care increasing by over 11.8% just in the last five years.
The cost of health care, one of the most divisive issues in Congress, is more expensive in some cities than others, and Newark is among the highest-cost cities in the United States.
Residents of New Jersey’s most populous city spend the third-most money on health care relative to what they earn, paying out an average of 11.3% of the median monthly household income for medical services and medicine, according to a report from WalletHub.
To determine where people are spending the greatest percentage of their earnings on health care, WalletHub analyzed the prices of five key health care components in 100 of the largest U.S. cities, then added these costs together and compared them to the median household income.
Newark has a low median household income, at $48,416 per year, the sixth-lowest average in the country. The city also has high prices for certain types of medical examinations, with the ninth-most expensive doctor visits and the 19th-most expensive dentist visits among 100 of the largest U.S. cities. It also ranks as the 27th-most expensive city for buying ibuprofen.
However, Newark is the fifth-cheapest city for purchasing insulin glargine. It also ranks as only the 60th-most expensive city for optometrist visits.
“As health care gets increasingly more expensive, more and more people find themselves struggling to afford essential services and medicines,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub writer and analyst. “While some cities have lower prices than others, the average income in many places still may not be enough to keep up with the costs, especially when consumers have also faced inflated prices across all other facets of their budgets over the past few years.”
One other New Jersey city, Jersey City, ranked 67th on the list. Residents there paid 5.99% of their household income on health care.
Detroit residents paid the most for health care, with 13.17% of their household income going to medical needs. Cleveland was second at 11.28%. Cities in California and Arizona occupied nine of the 10 spots among the least-expensive cities for health care spending. Gilbert, Ariz., was first as residents there spend 3.54% of household income on health care.
