The next President will likely inherit a ZERO HI Trust Fund; Expected exhaustion date closer to 2024

Strengthening The Medicare Trust Fund In The Era Of COVID-19

JUNE 10, 2020

SUMMARY;

In the most recent Actuaries’ report issued in April 2020, the Trust Fund was projected to be depleted in 2026.

It is clear that the HI Trust Fund will come under additional stress. While no formal projections have been made, the Actuaries’ worst-case scenario in this year’s report called for an expected exhaustion date closer to 2024.

https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20200608.322412/full/

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A countdown to ZERO, and then, Congress will have to find an extra $50 billion;

Last Trustee Report; HI revenues would cover only 90 percent of estimated expenditures in 2026 and 78 percent in 2044

2026 Estimated Expenditures; $505 billion

https://www.cms.gov/files/document/2020-medicare-trustees-report.pdf

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With a snap of the fingers they will fire up the printing presses and presto......... I don't even know what the HI trust funds means but we would probably do well to eliminate it. It sounds like something federal government shouldn't be doing.

 

IMO, two reasons why the HI Trust Fund will exhaust sooner than later;

Long Term Covid19 effects

1. Seniors who survived a Covid19 infection.

COVID-19 (coronavirus): Long-term effects

Organ damage caused by COVID-19

COVID-19 symptoms can sometimes persist for months. The virus can damage the lungs, heart and brain, which increases the risk of long-term health problems.

Many long-term COVID-19 effects still unknown



2. Seniors who weren't affected by Covid19, but......

Covid19 Anxiety, Stress, Depression have likely affected their health.

 

How is Medicare Financed?
Medicare is funded primarily from general revenues (43 percent), payroll taxes (36 percent), and beneficiary premiums (15 percent)

https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/the-facts-on-medicare-spending-and-financing/

2019 Math;

$756 Billion X 43% = $325 billion

After HI's Trust Fund Depletion; + an extra $50 billion = $375 billion, thus, 50% funded from general revenues.

 

Well sure, we're sending $10,000,000 to Pakistan for gender studies. Priorities!

 

So HI means "health insurance?"

 

Medicare Part A.......Hospital insurance

 

Thanks, now I know. Government always seems to get into trouble when it gets involved where it doesn't belong.

 

Actually, and for some time now Medicare, and for that matter SS, the real problem has been growth in life expectancy.
Medically, your most expensive 5 years is the last five years of your, and the longer you put that off the more expensive it becomes.

When Medicaid was passed in the sixties life expectancies had just touched seventy Now it's nearly eighty, and more and more people are seeing ninety and beyond meanwhile eligibility requirements have scarcely changed at all.

 

Medicare is a high risk insurance pool, thus, higher the risk, higher the cost, and there's no doubt that the long term health effect of Covid19 will further raise costs.

We already know that Covid19 has damaged several organs/worsened health conditions, however, many long term effects are still unknown.

 

Let's put this way; There's no doubt that Covid19 screwed up our Trustee's LOW PROJECTIONS, both Mortality and Morbidity.

Agree or disagree?

 

Oh, what the hell, just throw it into the Infrastructure act.

 

Bill China.

Seems like COVID did cure the flu, though.

 

It

Morbidity yes mortality actually helped since nearly 70 percent of the deceased were 70 plus. Reducing the number of people needing care helps the system. Actually morbidity is at best a mixed bag. Health care does not get cheaper as time passes ergo moving the time table forward for some may produce short term problems but will ease things over the long haul. And yes it is cold blooded as hell but the numbers don't care they are just numbers.

As it happens dead people don't require medical service. The only thing that covid did to exacerbate problems with our retirement and medical system s was to put a but load if people out of work for a year.

 

Gender studies?????????

Correction; It's a ''Women's Empowerment and Gender Equality Program'', and said $10 million funding to Pakistan was ''indirectly'' requested by Donald and Ivanka Trump, due to the fact that Trump's 2021 proposed budget DOUBLED the funding for Women's Empowerment programs.

''Indirectly'' means; Trump knew he doubled said program funding, but he didn't know about its distribution/allocation. Basically, Trump wanted to support his Daugher's pet project.

 

Eliminate Medicare? Are you kidding?

HI stands for Hospital Insurance. It's part of Medicare. Think it through.

 

They will likely need to increase those first two by a bit. They already increase the beneficiary premiums every two years.

 

No, eliminate the trust fund. This is a taxpayer funded benefit. Payroll taxes should cover it.

 

I wish they'd never used the term "trust fund" to describe any governmental account. It's all funded with current taxes. Not like there's trillions of dollars in an account somewhere that were invested a long time ago. That's already been spent. It's a ponzi scheme, just like many entitlement programs.

 

But they can still vote if they wish, as long they're Democrats, LOL.

 

Underline the word unknown.

 

Claim; ''HI has been a successful social program because benefits have been fully funded by its contributors''

As of 2024, if not repaired, no longer a successful social program.

 

They dont need to 'find' anything. They'll print the money, and we'll pay for it with higher prices at the grocery store.

 

There is no such thing as a successful federal government social program.

 

The HI Trust Fund is paid for via payroll taxes.

https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/briefing-book/what-medicare-trust-fund-and-how-it-financed

Tell me, in detail, why you would eliminate it, and how you would compensate for its absence.