Poll: Americans Still Delaying Medical Care as Virus Rages

Many Americans are continuing to put off getting medical care during the pandemic, with the latest number at 40% — roughly where it's been for 12 weeks.

The U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey found:

• 40.1% of Americans delayed getting medical care over the last week.
• The areas with the highest percentage of people who are delaying medical care are Washington, D.C. (50.6%); the Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, Michigan, Metro Area (50%); Maine (49.4%); Oregon (47.4%); and New Mexico (46.5%).
• The percentage of Americans who have delayed medical care over the last 12 weeks has hovered between 38.7% and 41.5%.

Medical experts are concerned about how many Americans are putting off visiting the hospital or their doctor during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that doing so could lead to unnecessary deaths due to cancer, heart disease, and more.

The margin of error for the U.S. Census Bureau survey is plus or minus 0.6 percentage points.

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