The Medicare program provides subsidized medical insurance for the elderly and for some disabled people. During 2012, enrollment in Medicare averaged about 50 million people. Gross spending (excluding administrative costs that are subject to appropriation) for the program was $551 billion. (Net spending, which has beneficiaries’ payments of premiums and some other receipts subtracted out, was $466 billion.) CBO anticipates that Medicare spending will rise rapidly over the next decade, spurred by the retirement of the baby boomers. The agency’s work on Medicare includes projections of future program spending, cost estimates of specific legislative proposals, and a range of analyses of policy options and issues affecting the program.
Medicare
featured work
Dual-Eligible Beneficiaries of Medicare and Medicaid: Characteristics, Health Care Spending, and Evolving PoliciesJun 2013 - People eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid benefits—known as “dual-eligible beneficiaries”—are a varied group, but many have extensive health care needs and account for a disproportionate share of spending on Medicare and Medicaid.
Medicare—May 2013 BaselineMay 2013
Offsetting Effects of Prescription Drug Use on Medicare’s Spending for Medical ServicesNov 2012 - CBO estimates that greater use of prescription drugs by Medicare beneficiaries reduces Medicare’s spending on medical services.
Letter to the Honorable John Boehner providing an estimate for H.R. 6079, the Repeal of Obamacare ActJul 2012 - CBO and the JCT have estimated the direct spending and revenue effects of H.R. 6079, as passed by the House of Representatives on July 11, 2012.
Long-Term Budget OutlookJun 2012 - The explosive path of federal debt under the fiscal scenario that many budget analysts believe is more representative of fiscal policies that are now or have recently been in effect underscores the need for large policy changes to put the federal government on a sustainable course.
The Long-Term Budgetary Impact of Paths for Federal Revenues and Spending Specified by Chairman RyanMar 2012 - The calculations presented here represent CBO's assessment of how the specified paths would alter the trajectories of federal debt, revenues, spending, and economic output relative to the trajectories under two scenarios that CBO has analyzed previously.
Raising the Ages of Eligibility for Medicare and Social SecurityJan 2012 - This issue brief reviews how ages of eligibility affect beneficiaries under current law and how delaying eligibility would affect beneficiaries, the federal budget, and the economy.
Lessons from Medicare's Demonstration Projects on Disease Management, Care Coordination, and Value-Based PaymentJan 2012 - CBO reviews the outcomes of 10 major demonstrations that have been evaluated by independent researchers.
Medicare Part DDec 2011 - In 2008, low-income enrollees who received an additional subsidy to participate in Medicare's prescription drug program spent on average twice as much as those not receiving the additional subsidy.
latest work
Testimony on Means-Tested Programs and Tax Credits for Low-Income Households
reportJune 18, 2013Dual-Eligible Beneficiaries of Medicare and Medicaid: Characteristics, Health Care Spending, and Evolving Policies
reportJune 6, 2013Glossary of Terms Related to Dual-Eligible Beneficiaries of Medicare and Medicaid
data or technical informationJune 6, 2013How CBO Prepares Long-Term Projections of Federal Spending for Social Security and Major Health Care Programs
presentationMay 21, 2013Estimated Effects on Direct Spending and Revenues for Health Care Programs of Proposals in the President's 2014 Budget
data or technical informationMay 17, 2013Medicare—May 2013 Baseline
data or technical informationMay 14, 2013Medicare's Payments to Physicians: The Budgetary Impact of Alternative Policies Relative to CBO's May 2013 Baseline
data or technical informationMay 14, 2013What Would Be the Effect on the Deficit of Using the Chained CPI to Index Benefit Programs and the Tax Code?
blog postApril 18, 2013
Use this menu to filter CBO's publications by topic. From January 2011 forward, all the agency's products are categorized by topic. Cost estimates released prior to the 112th Congress are not categorized by topic.