Originally published July 12 2005
Older population worries about health care costs
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
A Commonwealth Fund poll shows three out of five people aged 50 to 70 worry they won't be able to afford future medical health care and more than two-thirds of them support putting 1 percent of their earnings into a Medicare savings account.
Three of every five adults ages 50 to 70 worry that they won't be able to afford medical care in the future, according to a Commonwealth Fund poll.
Only about half of those surveyed who were working or had a working spouse are counting on job-based health benefits when they retire, according to the New York- based fund.
About half of adults surveyed have retirement savings of less than $50,000 and about two of every five have savings of less than $25,000.
The number of uninsured adults ages 50 to 64 rose to 6.4 million in 2003, the report said, citing the Census Bureau.
At 65, adults become eligible for Medicare.
More than two-thirds of older Americans support putting 1 percent of their earnings into a Medicare savings account to help defray the cost of long-term care or other expenses, the survey showed.
"The difficulty of the health savings account is that they are conditioned on the $1,000 deductible," said Karen Davis, president of the Commonwealth Fund.
"What that does is wipe out savings."
It also leads to people not getting treatment for chronic conditions, Davis said.
She said if such an account were taxed, it would be more flexible, and the money should be invested in Treasury bonds.
About one quarter of people surveyed had no health insurance before becoming eligible for Medicare, the survey showed.
"I think that there's really a strong case here for opening up Medicare to early enrollment," said John Rother, policy director for AARP, the Washington-based advocacy group for Americans over age 50.
"As Medicare itself becomes a high-deductible plan, I think we have to be more flexible, more creative in helping people deal with that," Rother said.
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