Healthcare affordability, declining trust, and the realities of reform | Natalie Davis (United States of Care)

Natalie Davis, CEO of United States of Care joins to discuss the organization’s latest polling on healthcare affordability and what it reveals about voter sentiment heading into the next election cycle. Drawing from research across more than 30,000 Americans, Natalie explains why affordability consistently emerges as the public’s top healthcare concern—not just because of medical bills, but because of the emotional stress, delayed care, and distrust the system creates. She walks through the policy solutions voters support most strongly, including prescription drug affordability, price transparency, site-neutral payments, and anti-competitive merger scrutiny. The conversation also explores the growing erosion of trust in healthcare institutions and the broader public backlash against a system increasingly perceived as prioritizing profits over patients. Natalie discusses why affordability reform is gaining traction in conservative states, how fragmented incentives make systemic change difficult, and why many organizations no longer have the leverage to independently reduce costs even when they want to. They also touch on AI in healthcare, where patients are simultaneously optimistic and deeply skeptical, with transparency and trust emerging as the key factors shaping adoption.For more from Health Tech Nerds, subscribe to our weekly newsletters: https://www.healthtechnerds.com/subscribe