A poll released yesterday by Consumer’s Union finds that 51% of Americans have faced tough health choices in the past  year. Americans have put off a doctor visit, not been able to afford medical bills or medication or declined a medical test because of cost. The new poll also found that 59% of Americans said the cost of their health care had increased more than their other expenses over the past two years.

Two additional polls released last week highlight New York’s need for health reform and how Americans feel they are being represented in the reform conversation:

A survey from the Community Service Society found that one in three New Yorkers say they or someone in their family has not gotten or postponed medical care or a prescription in the past 12 months because of a lack of  money or insurance. In addition, 81% of New Yorkers say making health care more affordable should be a top or high priority for their elected official

NPR/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard School of Public Health Survey on the Role of Health Care Interest Groups found that 71% of Americans say Congress is paying too little attention to what people like them are saying about changes to the health care system; two-thirds say there is no group in Washington that represents their own views on what’s best for the country when it comes to health care, or they don’t know if there is such a group.