Lowering the Age of Medicare Eligibility
to 60 Could Reduce the Cost of Health Care and Have a Modest Effect on
the Number of People Who Are Uninsured
A new KFF
analysis shows that lowering the age of Medicare eligibility
to 60 could improve the affordability of coverage for people who are
already insured and expand coverage to over a million of the nation’s 30
million uninsured.
Such a policy could provide a path to Medicare coverage for up to 11.7
million people with employer-based insurance and 2.4 million with
private, non-group coverage who are ages 60 to 64, although it is unclear
how many would take up such coverage. Another 1.6 million people age
60-64 are uninsured and would be eligible for Medicare coverage under
such a policy.
Lowering the age of
Medicare eligibility could shift the cost of coverage largely from
employers to the federal government and lower the cost of coverage for
newly eligible people while increasing federal spending.
President Biden proposed
lowering the age of Medicare eligibility to 60 during the presidential
campaign and reiterated his support recently. Proposals to lower the age
of Medicare, either to 60 or a younger age, may be considered by
Congress.
The ultimate effect on
coverage, access, and affordability of such a plan would depend on
decisions individuals make and how the program is designed, including
what type of premium and cost sharing assistance it provides to
newly-eligible adults.
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