Increasing Medicare’s Eligibility Age Could Aim Gov’t Savings, But Tally Higher Total Health Spending

Healthcare spending for few services dropped by almost a third when persons turned 65 and switched from private insurance to Medicare, in accordance to a recent study. The decline was driven by lower costs paid by the Medicare program to doctors and other contributors rather than a drop-off in the volume of services seniors receive.

The study offers a preview of the potential effect of raising the Medicare eligibility age to 67 from the present 65, said Jacob Wallace, a doctoral candidate in health policy at Harvard University who coauthored the study, which was published in the month of May issue of Health Affairs.

“What this study indicates, pretty clearly, is that while the government might save money by increasing Medicare eligibility to 67, overall national health care spending will go up,” Wallace stated.