Voice to Congress

Cost of Living

Americans are paying more for housing, healthcare, childcare, and everyday life, but many families do not feel more secure. People are working hard and still falling behind.

Housing costs have risen much faster than many incomes.
Healthcare costs more here than in many other wealthy countries.
Childcare is crushing many working families.
Rent takes too much of too many paychecks.
Congress can change the rules that drive these costs.

Make your voice count.

Read the issue. Understand the problem. Then send a clear message to Congress asking for action.

Act Now Executive Summary

Why this matters

18.0%

Healthcare reached 18.0% of U.S. GDP in 2024.

31%

Median renter share of income spent on gross rent in 2024.

38 states

Childcare costs more than public college tuition in 38 states and D.C.

536%

Increase in median U.S. home sale price from 1980 to Q4 2025.

What we have and what we want

The current system is too expensive, too complex, and too hard on ordinary families. We need policies that lower costs, increase supply, strengthen competition, and support working households.

What We Have

Housing prices and rents rising faster than many families can keep up with.
Healthcare costs that are among the highest in the world.
Childcare costs that often rival or exceed college tuition.
Wages that have not kept up with the full cost of living.
A system that feels expensive, fragmented, and unfair.

What We Want

More housing supply and fewer unnecessary barriers to building.
Lower healthcare costs through transparency, negotiation, and competition.
Affordable childcare and stronger support for working families.
Competitive markets that reduce concentration and price inflation.
Economic growth that actually improves family financial security.

Countries often ranked highly for better cost-of-living practices

There is no single worldwide ranking for cost-of-living policy. But several countries are frequently cited for better results in housing, healthcare, childcare, or family affordability.

Australia

Frequently ranked near the top for healthcare performance among wealthy countries, while spending a far smaller share of GDP on healthcare than the United States.

Netherlands

Strong healthcare performance, housing benefits, and major childcare support reforms make it one of the most useful countries to study.

Austria

Known for a large social and subsidized housing sector, especially in Vienna, helping keep more housing within reach.

Denmark

A strong housing and family-support model with a large social housing sector and a long tradition of broad public support.

Sweden

Widely known for family support, paid leave, and low out-of-pocket childcare costs compared with many other countries.

Japan

Often studied for housing supply policies and a system that puts more emphasis on making enough homes available.

These countries are useful models because they show that lower costs and better outcomes are possible when policy is designed to serve the public.

Why the U.S. pays more and gets less

Housing supply is too constrained

When supply cannot keep up with demand, prices rise. Restrictive zoning, permitting delays, and infrastructure bottlenecks all make affordability worse.

Healthcare prices are too high

The United States spends far more than peer countries on healthcare, yet still performs poorly overall. Families, employers, and taxpayers all carry the burden.

Family supports are weaker

Many top-performing countries reduce the cost of raising children through childcare subsidies, leave policies, and direct support. The U.S. does less.

Too much complexity and fragmentation

Americans often face a maze of prices, plans, fees, rules, and disconnected programs. Complexity itself becomes a cost.

Too little competition in key sectors

High concentration in healthcare, housing finance, and other essential markets can reduce consumer choice and drive prices higher.

Wages do not fully translate into security

Even when pay increases, housing, healthcare, childcare, and debt can eat up the gains. Families feel this every month.

What the top countries have in common

They treat housing supply and affordability as public priorities, not side issues.
They use stronger public bargaining power, regulation, or transparency to hold down healthcare costs.
They provide more support for families with children through childcare, leave, and income supports.
They make systems easier to understand and easier to use.
They invest in long-term productivity, infrastructure, and competition rather than just reacting after costs explode.
They measure outcomes and adjust policy when the system is not delivering.

Congress will not fix this unless people push for change.

If Americans want lower costs, better value, and a system that works for ordinary people, they have to say so clearly and consistently.

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