“US healthcare spending hits record highs, led by senior care costs,” by Donna Shryer, McKnights LTC News
“The newest and most extensive analysis of U.S. healthcare spending reveals unprecedented insights into how medical costs are distributed across all age groups, with a significant portion allocated to senior care. In 2019 alone, total US healthcare expenditures reached $3.8 trillion – an amount expected to surpass $7 trillion by 2031. The comprehensive study, published in JAMA, examined spending across 3,110 counties by four payers (Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, and out-of-pocket payments) and 148 health conditions. More than 40% of total healthcare expenditures was dedicated to Americans over age 65, according to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine. The study found that spending peaked for the 85-and-older demographic, which had the highest per capita costs of any age group.”
LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform:
In 2023, 18% of the U.S. population was 65 and older. That number will increase to 22% by 2040. LTC’s slippery fiscal slope is steepening as the age wave crests.