US elderly consumption of healthcare assessed:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Americans aged 65 or older account for 36% of total spending on healthcare, even though they make up only 13% of the US population, according to a new report by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The elderly spend an average of $11,089 on their healthcare, the agency said. Taken together Medicare, the federal health plan for the elderly and the disabled, and Medicaid, the federal/state health plan for the poor (including the impoverished elderly) cover 61% of the average yearly medical expenditures for people aged 65 or over. The study was based on 1999 data.