Gas prices top economic worries About 44% of survey participants say that the pinch at the pump is a 'serious problem.'

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Paying for gasoline easily tops the list of economic woes facing families in the United States, according to a survey on how changes in the economy have affected people's lives.

About 44% of survey participants said paying for gasoline was a "serious problem" for them. Across all income levels, the cost of gas was the most frequently cited economic concern. The price of gas nationally averaged $3.60 a gallon on Monday, according to the Energy Department.

More than a quarter of households earning more than $75,000 a year described paying for gasoline as a serious problem. For those with incomes of less than $30,000, about 63% felt that way.

In a distant second and third place among participants' economic concerns were: getting a good-paying job or raise, 29%; and paying for health care and health insurance, 28%.

Following in fourth place was difficulty paying rent or mortgage, 19%.

Many participants in the survey, nearly three in 10, said they put off or postponed getting health care they needed in the past year. Nearly a quarter of participants skipped a recommended test or treatment. Nearly the same number didn't fill a prescription.

The survey of 2,003 adults was conducted April 3-13 on behalf of the Kaiser Family Foundation, which conducts health research. The survey's margin of sampling error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.