A new West Health-Gallup Affordability Index report found that only about half of U.S. adults are “cost secure” in health—recording a decline compared with earlier years and signaling heightened anxiety over rising healthcare costs. The study groups Americans by access to quality care and ability to pay for services and medicine. The article spotlights a risk pathway that resembles higher education cost pressures: medical expenses can destabilize households, delay graduation, and force difficult tradeoffs between tuition, books, and health needs. A featured adult learner described delaying graduation after treatment costs escalated. While the report notes the data precedes some recent healthcare policy changes, it still reflects affordability strain as a leading stressor. Nearly three-quarters of adults said healthcare costs are a financial burden. For colleges and universities, the message is operational: student support services that address financial aid, emergency grants, and benefits navigation may increasingly need to integrate healthcare affordability barriers to prevent attrition and delays.