Graphic of the week: Ohioans across political spectrum support policies to slow healthcare cost grow

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Data included in a keynote presentation at HPIO’s 2026 Health Policy Summit shows that Ohioans across the political spectrum are overwhelmingly in favor of government action to lower healthcare costs, as illustrated above.

The Altarum Institute Consumer Healthcare Experience State Survey data was included in the opening keynote remarks from Alex Spratt, the Vice President of Health Care at Arnold Ventures, whose presentation was titled “Catalyzing policy progress through data and evidence.”
 
The new polling data comes as many Ohioans continue to struggle with healthcare costs, with 68% of Ohioans reporting that they have experienced a healthcare affordability burden and 75% saying that they are worried about the cost of healthcare in the future.
 
The burden of higher healthcare costs was one of the key findings in HPIO’s 2026 Health Value Dashboard, which found that, “Higher healthcare costs can make it harder for people to access care and for employers to offer affordable health insurance. Rising costs also strain health systems, leading to, for example, reduced services or closed hospitals in rural areas.”
 
Healthcare access and affordability was also the topic of a breakout session at HPIO’s Summit. A panel that included HPIO healthcare policy analyst Brian O’Rourke, Rep. Meredith Craig (R-Smithville), Rep. Rachel Baker (D-Cincinnati) and Molly Mottram, Director of Healthcare Policy at the Ohio Chamber of Commerce. The panel was moderated by Georgetown professor Sabrina Corlette.
 
To learn more about the issue, see HPIO’s healthcare access and affordability series, which includes data and analysis about the current challenges facing working Ohioans and examines how recent policy changes, such as the 2025 federal reconciliation bill (HR 1) and the state budget bill (HB 96), will impact access to care and affordability in Ohio.