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    June 23, 2015

    A panel discussion with leading experts on the interaction of increases in Medicare costs for beneficiaries, reductions in Social Security benefits, and the decline of private savings and pensions as they bear on those proposals.

    Medicare & Medicaid at 50

    A panel discussion with Marilyn Moon of American Institutes for Research, Tricia Neuman of the Kaiser Family Foundation, C. Eugene Steuerle of the Urban Institute, and Marc Goldwein of the Committee For Responsible Federal Budget on the impact of rising Medicare costs on beneficiaries at a time of declining retiree incomes, on other family support programs, and on the federal budget overall.

    The 50th anniversary of Medicare is an opportunity to celebrate the critical role this program has played in efficiently and effectively providing healthcare for millions of Americans. In 1962, 48% of the elderly were uninsured. Today, only 2% lack coverage. This vast improvement has played a major role in the 15-year increase in life expectancy among 65-and-older Americans since 1965.

    Medicare’s 50th anniversary is also an opportunity to look ahead at the challenges facing the program. For beneficiaries, Medicare coverage carries an increasingly high cost — estimated at 14% of average senior household income today. In 2010, the most recent year for which comprehensive data are available, Medicare beneficiaries paid an estimated average of $4,734 out-of-pocket – a 44% increase since 2000. Of that amount, 42% went for premiums for Medicare and Medigap supplemental insurance, and 58% went for out-of-pocket costs of services.

    As federal policymakers and industry leaders look at the cost projections for Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, the need for spending on other family support programs, and the federal budget overall, has enough policy attention been paid to the current (and future) beneficiary experience of ever increasing out-of-pocket costs?

    This symposium spotlights the interaction between Medicare costs, reductions in Social Security benefits, the continuing decline of pensions and inadequate private savings and the need for spending on other family support programs, as well as the federal budget and the need for reducing the deficit.

    Panelists:

    • Marilyn Moon, Director, Center on Aging, and Institute Fellow, American Institutes for Research
    • Tricia Neuman, Senior Vice President, the Kaiser Family Foundation
    • C. Eugene Steuerle, Institute Fellow, The Urban Institute, and Co-founder of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center
    • Marc Goldwein, Senior Vice President and Senior Policy Director, Committee For a Responsible Federal Budget

    Throughout 2015, the National Academy of Social Insurance is commemorating the 50th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid with a series of special activities, including this symposium. Working with a variety of partners, the Academy is committed to providing the public and the policy community with a platform for educational dialogue around the history and future of these two vital programs. Learn more about the Academy’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, and stay tuned for additional events.

    The Academy’s Medicare and Medicaid at 50 and Beyond Celebration Program is made possible thanks to support from

      

    and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation President’s Grant Fund of the Princeton Area Community Foundation.