Insuring the Near-Elderly: How Much Would Medicare Save?

Providing insurance to uninsured near-elderly adults would result in 98 billion of savings for Medicare in the first decade after that group becomes eligible for Medicare. This calculation rests on the assumption that personal characteristics recorded in the HRS (Health and Retirement Study) data account for all of the differences between the continuously insured and continuously uninsured groups that might affect their utilization after they become eligible for Medicare. Here, Bhattacharya looks at how much Medicare would be saved for insuring the near-elderly.