Financial Experts Question Fidelity Estimate Of Savings For Retirees' Health Expenses

Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 15 Mar 2006 - 8:00 PDT

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An annual estimate released last week by Fidelity Investments that 65-year-old couples who retire without employer-sponsored health insurance will require an average of $200,000 to cover out-of-pocket health care costs during retirement is inadequate, according to many financial experts and other observers, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to the Employee Benefit Research Institute, retirees might require twice the amount estimated by Fidelity based on longer future life expectancy. EBRI estimates that 65-year-old couples who retire without employer-sponsored health insurance will require $216,000 if they live to age 80, $444,000 if they live to age 90 and $778,000 if they live to age 100. In addition to longer future life expectancy, financial experts said that the Fidelity estimate did not include the cost of over-the-counter medications, most dental care and long-term care or expected increases in Medicare premiums (Wall Street Journal, 3/11).

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

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