Healthcare Education and Q&A Thread

[saden1]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

This is actually very helpful for illustrating a point, thanks for posting.

You'll see on slide 2 of saden's link, it shows that 19% of healthcare spending was paid for through Medicare, and 15% through state Medicaid programs. Combined, that's 34% of the nation's healthcare spending from government programs.

Government budgets are suffering right now, and Obama's budget includes minimal increases in reimbursement from Medicare. State budgets are even worse off, and most aren't increasing reimbursement at all.

Overall, healthcare expenses are growing 7% per year. But, as noted, no increases are expected to come from the government. This means the rest of the payers need to fund the entire nation's 7% increase in expenses.

So for those of us not covered by government programs, the increase will feel like a 10.6% increase. We have to carry the government's share of the increase (7% / [1-.34] ) = 10.6%.

The 2009 budget allocated 262 billion for Medicaid and 425 billion Medicare. The 2010 Obama budget requests 290 billion for Medicaid (+11% from previous year) and 452 billion for Medicare (+6% from previous year) be allocated.

BTW Bush's original 2009 budget for Medicaid and Medicare had to be supplemented. My 2009 Death and Taxes poster says he originally budgeted 215 billion for Medicaid and 409 billion for Medicare.