The financial impact of big medical bills

• Between 2013 and 2015, these payments averaged more than $2,000.
• They also had a lasting impact on the family's finances: A year after making the payment, liquid assets were still down by 2% and credit card balances up by 9%.

In the two months before making these payments, families' cash balances increased by 5% and their take-home income jumped by 4%, suggesting that people either saved in anticipation of expensive medical care or delayed care until they had enough money to pay for it.

• Out-of-pocket health care spending increased by 60% the week after families received a tax refund.
• Of health care spending associated with tax refunds, 62% was made for care likely received that day, meaning that care itself was deferred — not just the payment for it.

The bottom line: Many conditions deteriorate the longer they go unaddressed, ultimately making them harder and more expensive to treat. But, financial pressures still force people to wait.