SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A majority of Americans from the ages of 15 to 34 support government-funded college tuition and healthcare, according to a new AP poll. (Photo: Scott Eells/Bloomberg)
Shouldering More Than $1.5 Trillion in Debt, Majority of Young Americans Back Free College Tuition and Medicare for All
"If you put an initiative on the ballot to forgive (or have the government pay off) this debt, it would make showing up and winning on Election Day worth an average of $30,000 for millions of millennials."
Oct 24, 2018
Reflecting the economic realities faced by young Americans, a new poll finds that a majority of people between the ages of 15 and 34 believe the government should use its vast resources to provide free healthcare and college tuition to the country--saving younger and future generations from the student loan and medical debt experienced by millions of Americans.
According to a survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and MTV, 69 percent of young Americans support a single-payer healthcare program like Medicare for All, while 66 percent back government-funded college tuition--likely to lessen the burden of debt that many are living under.
\u201cNearly 1 in 3 Millennials owes student loan debt. If you put an initiative on the ballot to forgive (or have the government pay off) this debt it would make showing up and winning on Election Day worth an average of $30,000 for millions of Millennials.\u201d— Samuel Sinyangwe (@Samuel Sinyangwe) 1534045954
\u201cToo many of our young Americans are being saddled with debt, and not just from student loans.\n\nA new study finds that Millennials also have the most medical debt.\n\nhttps://t.co/3T6lWmee95\u201d— Ro Khanna (@Ro Khanna) 1534105500
\u201cMillennials rack up the most medical debt and more frequently: https://t.co/oMdJFZ8THE\n\n"If you know you can\u2019t afford a bill, and you don\u2019t want to incur debt, then you might not seek care.\u201d\n\nFor-profit healthcare is killing us! Americans deserve #MedicareForAll! #TuesdayThoughts\u201d— Bonnie Castillo (@Bonnie Castillo) 1533068751
The proposals have the most support among Democrats, with 80 percent and 79 percent of Democratic respondents expressing approval, respectively. But about two-thirds of independent voters also said they believe the government should provide healthcare and post-secondary education to Americans, and more than one-third of young Republicans agreed.
The poll results come as both ideas are garnering more support among elected officials--and as many millennials report bleak financial circumstances and outlooks due to crippling debt, contrasting sharply with the experiences of their parents a generation ago.
Forty-four million people currently hold $1.5 trillion in collective student loan debt, and 17 million of them are under the age of 30. Young borrowers pay an average of $350 per month on top of other expenses. Young Americans are also affected by medical debt, with one study published this summer in Health Affairs finding that among all Americans who owe medical bills to debt collectors, the largest share were 27 years old--a year older than young people are when they lose eligibility to remain on their parents' health insurance plans through the Affordable Care Act.
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Reflecting the economic realities faced by young Americans, a new poll finds that a majority of people between the ages of 15 and 34 believe the government should use its vast resources to provide free healthcare and college tuition to the country--saving younger and future generations from the student loan and medical debt experienced by millions of Americans.
According to a survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and MTV, 69 percent of young Americans support a single-payer healthcare program like Medicare for All, while 66 percent back government-funded college tuition--likely to lessen the burden of debt that many are living under.
\u201cNearly 1 in 3 Millennials owes student loan debt. If you put an initiative on the ballot to forgive (or have the government pay off) this debt it would make showing up and winning on Election Day worth an average of $30,000 for millions of Millennials.\u201d— Samuel Sinyangwe (@Samuel Sinyangwe) 1534045954
\u201cToo many of our young Americans are being saddled with debt, and not just from student loans.\n\nA new study finds that Millennials also have the most medical debt.\n\nhttps://t.co/3T6lWmee95\u201d— Ro Khanna (@Ro Khanna) 1534105500
\u201cMillennials rack up the most medical debt and more frequently: https://t.co/oMdJFZ8THE\n\n"If you know you can\u2019t afford a bill, and you don\u2019t want to incur debt, then you might not seek care.\u201d\n\nFor-profit healthcare is killing us! Americans deserve #MedicareForAll! #TuesdayThoughts\u201d— Bonnie Castillo (@Bonnie Castillo) 1533068751
The proposals have the most support among Democrats, with 80 percent and 79 percent of Democratic respondents expressing approval, respectively. But about two-thirds of independent voters also said they believe the government should provide healthcare and post-secondary education to Americans, and more than one-third of young Republicans agreed.
The poll results come as both ideas are garnering more support among elected officials--and as many millennials report bleak financial circumstances and outlooks due to crippling debt, contrasting sharply with the experiences of their parents a generation ago.
Forty-four million people currently hold $1.5 trillion in collective student loan debt, and 17 million of them are under the age of 30. Young borrowers pay an average of $350 per month on top of other expenses. Young Americans are also affected by medical debt, with one study published this summer in Health Affairs finding that among all Americans who owe medical bills to debt collectors, the largest share were 27 years old--a year older than young people are when they lose eligibility to remain on their parents' health insurance plans through the Affordable Care Act.
Reflecting the economic realities faced by young Americans, a new poll finds that a majority of people between the ages of 15 and 34 believe the government should use its vast resources to provide free healthcare and college tuition to the country--saving younger and future generations from the student loan and medical debt experienced by millions of Americans.
According to a survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and MTV, 69 percent of young Americans support a single-payer healthcare program like Medicare for All, while 66 percent back government-funded college tuition--likely to lessen the burden of debt that many are living under.
\u201cNearly 1 in 3 Millennials owes student loan debt. If you put an initiative on the ballot to forgive (or have the government pay off) this debt it would make showing up and winning on Election Day worth an average of $30,000 for millions of Millennials.\u201d— Samuel Sinyangwe (@Samuel Sinyangwe) 1534045954
\u201cToo many of our young Americans are being saddled with debt, and not just from student loans.\n\nA new study finds that Millennials also have the most medical debt.\n\nhttps://t.co/3T6lWmee95\u201d— Ro Khanna (@Ro Khanna) 1534105500
\u201cMillennials rack up the most medical debt and more frequently: https://t.co/oMdJFZ8THE\n\n"If you know you can\u2019t afford a bill, and you don\u2019t want to incur debt, then you might not seek care.\u201d\n\nFor-profit healthcare is killing us! Americans deserve #MedicareForAll! #TuesdayThoughts\u201d— Bonnie Castillo (@Bonnie Castillo) 1533068751
The proposals have the most support among Democrats, with 80 percent and 79 percent of Democratic respondents expressing approval, respectively. But about two-thirds of independent voters also said they believe the government should provide healthcare and post-secondary education to Americans, and more than one-third of young Republicans agreed.
The poll results come as both ideas are garnering more support among elected officials--and as many millennials report bleak financial circumstances and outlooks due to crippling debt, contrasting sharply with the experiences of their parents a generation ago.
Forty-four million people currently hold $1.5 trillion in collective student loan debt, and 17 million of them are under the age of 30. Young borrowers pay an average of $350 per month on top of other expenses. Young Americans are also affected by medical debt, with one study published this summer in Health Affairs finding that among all Americans who owe medical bills to debt collectors, the largest share were 27 years old--a year older than young people are when they lose eligibility to remain on their parents' health insurance plans through the Affordable Care Act.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.