Everybody says it's important, but for the wrong reasons. It's treated like a contest, to get "ahead," get high test scores, get into a desired college, and hopefully major in STEM. Then it can be safely forgotten.

I know adults from the countries that are supposed to have wonderful math education (high test scores), and they forget their math too.

I think the people who remain good at math in adulthood were the ones who developed a genuine interest in math as an end unto itself, and figured out a way to keep up with it after college.