High health care costs hurt Californians every day. Millions can’t afford the care they need. More than half of all Californians skip or delay getting care because it costs too much.

CHCF’s body of work on affordability tracks trends and identifies the systemic drivers of high health care costs, documents the impact on Californians, and lifts up policy solutions.

On this page, explore CHCF’s latest research, commentary, and storytelling to help you better understand what’s causing California’s health care affordability crisis and what we can do about it. 

Essential Resources on Affordability

Understanding California’s Affordability Crisis: The 25% Problem

CHCF’s Kristof Stremikis and Anne Sunderland break down some of the reasons why health care costs in California are so high and what California is doing about it.

Illustration of home health aide helping elderly woman in her kitchen.

The 25% Problem: Why Health Care Is So Expensive (And What We Can Do About It)

Health care costs hurt Californians every day. Millions can’t afford the care they need. More than half of all Californians skip or delay getting care because it costs too much. How did we get here?

Recent Resources

Illustration of multicolored lines moving from chaos to order
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Inside CHCF

4 Priorities for a Pivotal Moment in California Health Care

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Expert Perspective

CHCF Testifies to State Lawmakers About Health Care Affordability

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Data Insight

The 2026 CHCF California Health Policy Survey

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Inside CHCF

CHCF Board of Directors Welcomes Health Policy Leader Jim Wood

Dr. Sandra R. Hernández speaks at California State Assembly Health Informational Hearing
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Expert Perspective

‘California Has the Power to Protect the Health of Our People’

Sandra R. Hernández President & Chief Executive Officer
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Expert Perspective

‘Back to the Future’: Defending Care in a New Era