Rochester Voice 9:42 a.m.
Monday, December 29, 2025 9:48 am
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With the cost of medical care rising significantly in recent years, the personal-finance company WalletHub today released its report on the Cities Where People Spend the Most and Least on Health Care to shed light on where Americans are struggling the most to afford essential care.
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.
| Highest % of Income Spent | Lowest % of Income Spent | |
| 1. Detroit, MI (13.17%) | 91. San Francisco, CA (4.64%) | |
| 2. Cleveland, OH (11.35%) | 92. Henderson, NV (4.62%) | |
| 3. Newark, NJ (11.28%) | 93. San Jose, CA (4.60%) | |
| 4. Toledo, OH (11.03%) | 94. Santa Clarita, CA (4.15%) | |
| 5. Birmingham, AL (9.97%) | 95. Chandler, AZ (4.14%) | |
| 6. Milwaukee, WI (9.58%) | 96. Huntington Beach, CA (4.13%) | |
| 7. Winston-Salem, NC (9.44%) | 97. Scottsdale, AZ (4.00%) | |
| 8. New Orleans, LA (9.28%) | 98. Irvine, CA (3.82%) | |
| 9. Spokane, WA (9.16%) | 99. Fremont, CA (3.67%) | |
| 10. Baton Rouge, LA (9.01%) | 100. Gilbert, AZ (3.54%) | |
To view the full report and your city's rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/cities-where-people-spend-the-most-least-on-health-care/154274
"As health care gets increasingly more expensive, more and more people find themselves struggling to afford essential services and medicines. 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."
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"People in Detroit spend the most on health care, with essential medical visits and medicine costing an average of 13.2% of the median monthly household income, the highest percentage in the country. For comparison, residents of Gilbert, AZ, only spend around 3.5% of their income for the same services and medicines, the lowest percentage."
- Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst