The average Medicare beneficiary spent $5,460 out of pocket on insurance premiums, cost-sharing for Medicare-covered services and other healthcare costs in 2016, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation analysis.
The $5,460 includes spending by beneficiaries living in the community as well as the 5 percent of traditional Medicare beneficiaries living in long-term care facilities.
The average out-of-pocket spending was $4,519 in 2016 for beneficiaries living in the community and $1,014 for beneficiaries living in long-term care facilities, according to the analysis, which was based on the latest available data in the CMS Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey.
But researchers said out-of-pocket spending varied across groups of beneficiaries. For example, Medicare beneficiaries ages 85 and older spent $10,307 out of pocket, on average, compared to $5,021 among Medicare beneficiaries between the ages of 65 and 74. The analysis found those who had been hospitalized, women and people with multiple chronic conditions were also likely to spend more out of pocket.
Read more about the analysis here.
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