A moving target: financing Medicare for the future.
Since 1997, there has been a steady downward trend in projected Medicare spending as a share of the gross domestic product (GDP), substantially improving the long-run outlook for Medicare. But even with improvements in outlook, the required share of GDP will rise by more than 70%, and the question remains as to who will pay for Medicare in the future. This report examines a limited set of tax options and a flat beneficiary premium to illustrate the size of contributions necessary to achieve several different goals, and to explore the difference that multiple years of projections can make on these requirements.
Urban Institute, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, 2100 M St., N.W., Washington DC 20037, USA.
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D000368:Aged; D005249:Fees and Charges / Q000639:trends; D005380:Financing, Government / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends*; D005544:Forecasting; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000639:trends*; D006291:Health Policy / Q000191:economics / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D016344:Medicare Part A / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends; D016345:Medicare Part B / Q000191:economics* / Q000639:trends; D013660:Taxes / Q000639:trends; D014481:United States