Bernanke: Aging, Health Costs Challenge U.S. Future
Main Category: Seniors / AgingAlso Included In: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 06 Oct 2010 - 4:00 PDT
email to a friend
printer friendly
opinions'Bernanke: Aging, Health Costs Challenge U.S. Future'
| Patient / Public: |  |
|
| Healthcare Prof: |  |
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke issued a new warning Monday about aging and health care costs.
"'An improving economy should reduce near-term deficits, but our public finances are, nevertheless, on an unsustainable path in the longer term, reflecting in large part our aging population and the continual rise in health-care costs,' Bernanke said in a half-hour speech" at a meeting of the Rhode Island Expenditure Council, The Providence Journal reports. He added that states face similar challenges: "...'the retirement of state employees, together with continuing increases in health-care costs, will cause public pension and retiree health-care obligations to become increasingly difficult to meet,' Bernanke said. Estimates of unfunded pension liabilities for the states as a whole run as high as $2 trillion at the end of 2009, he said" (Downing, 10/5).
Dow Jones Newswire/The Wall Street Journal: "Bernanke pointed to congressional projections that the ratio of federal spending for health-care programs--mainly Medicare and Medicaid--to national income will double over the next 25 years. Meantime, the aging of the U.S. population will also strain Social Security, as the number of workers paying taxes into the system rises more slowly than the number of people receiving benefits" (Di Leo, 10/4).
The Associated Press: "The options for slicing the deficit - cutting spending on popular entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare and raising taxes - will be difficult for the White House and Congress to sell to the American public. Bernanke steered clear of making recommendations on the best way to reduce the deficits, saying those tough decisions are best left to the nation's elected officials" (Aversa, 10/4).
This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at kaiserhealthnews.org.
© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
Visit our seniors / aging section for the latest news on this subject.
MLA
26 May. 2012. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/203643.php>
APA
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/203643.php.
Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.
Add Your Opinion On This Article
'Bernanke: Aging, Health Costs Challenge U.S. Future'Please note that we publish your name, but we do not publish your email address. It is only used to let you know when your message is published. We do not use it for any other purpose. Please see our privacy policy for more information.
If you write about specific medications or operations, please do not name health care professionals by name.
All opinions are moderated before being included (to stop spam)
Contact Our News Editors
For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.
Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:
Note: Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.
Privacy Policy |
Terms and Conditions
MediLexicon International Ltd
Bexhill-on-Sea, United Kingdom
MediLexicon International Ltd © 2004-2012 All rights reserved.
MNT (logo) is the registered EU trade mark of MediLexicon Int. Limited.
Bexhill-on-Sea, United Kingdom
MediLexicon International Ltd © 2004-2012 All rights reserved.
MNT (logo) is the registered EU trade mark of MediLexicon Int. Limited.
