MedPage Today December 8, 2024
— Updated policies can help older adults cover the costs of care
Medicare was created to ensure older adults in the U.S. have healthcare coverage while protecting them from financial ruin. But for at least 10 million older adults today, one of the most influential insurance programs in the U.S. is failing. For this financially precarious population of Medicare beneficiaries, a hospitalization costs around $1,600 and triggers an immediate financial crisis. And with the risk of hospitalization rising with age, this kind of threat is all but unavoidable. Nearly 60 years after its founding, Medicare is full of coverage gaps and may be driving many near-poor older Americans into a poverty trap.
More than half of older adults in the...
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