Seniors' health care spending rose one-third in decade

David Gulliver - posted 8 am Thursday, Aug. 26

With the healthcare reform debate churning, a federal study offers one more point to consider: Medical spending by Americans 65 and older rose on average $2,000 per person from 1996 to 2006, a one-third increase even after adjusting for inflation.

The figures are in a report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and draw on data from a nationwide survey (unlike many studies, which use only Medicare data). It does not include people living in nursing homes or similar institutions.

On average, seniors paid an inflation-adjusted $6,989 for their health care costs in 1996 and $9,080 in 2006. Some noteworthy categories: prescription drug spending rose from $105 to $174 per person, physician office visits went from $114 to $180 and daily hospital stays went from $2,271 to $2,714.

The full study is available at this link.