Gallup poll: Healthcare costs, access top issue for voters

Americans are more concerned about the availability and cost of health care than any other domestic issue, with it reclaiming the top spot for the first time since 2020, according to a national poll (Source: “Health care polling as top issue for first time since 2020: Gallup,” The Hill, March 31).

The latest Gallup poll, released Tuesday, found that 61% of the 1,000 adults surveyed said they worry a “great deal” about accessing and affording health care, while 23 percent expressed a “fair amount” of concern.

That is compared to 51 percent of respondents who said they were concerned a “great deal” about the economy and 50 percent who said the same about inflation — two issues that dominated public anxiety over the past several years, according to the survey.

This week KFF released a new issue brief that summarizes the role health care has historically played in elections using KFF polls, exit polls, and other data to show how health care, especially the issue of health care costs, may play a role in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections.