Page 2 - ARUBA TODAY

A2 UP FRONT
Thursday 21 February 2019

Government headed for close

to half of nation’s health tab

By RICARDO ALONSO- care, which is experienc- cover all Americans.
ZALDIVAR ing a surge in enrollment as “To the extent that a Mar-
Associated Press aging baby boomers shift tian landed and saw how
WASHINGTON (AP) — Even out of private coverage, much of the American
without a history-making according to the analysis health care system is fund-
health care remake to from the Centers for Medi- ed by the government, it’s
deliver “Medicare-for-all,” care and Medicaid Servic- been about 50 percent for
government at all levels es, part of the U.S. Depart- some time,” said econo-
will be paying nearly half ment of Health and Human mist Paul Hughes-Crom-
the nation’s health care Services. Federal, state and wick of Altarum, a nonprofit
tab in less than 10 years, local governments will be research organization.
according to a federal re- paying 47 percent of the The report projected that
port released Wednesday. nation’s health care costs U.S. health care spending
The government growth is in 2027, up from 45 percent will surpass $5.9 trillion in
This Feb. 2, 2015, file photo, depicts a part of a U.S. $100 bill.
Associated Press driven by traditional Medi- currently, the report said. 2027, growing to represent
The report did not consid- more than 19 percent of
er the potential impact of the economy.
“Medicare-for-all” nation- Health care spending is ex-
al health insurance plans pected to increase some-
from Democratic presiden- what more rapidly than
tial candidate Bernie Sand- overall economic growth
ers and other liberals. from 2018 to 2027, under-
Nor did it delve into a finan- scoring an ingrained af-
cial rescue of traditional fordability problem for gov-
Medicare that could be- ernment, employers and
come a pressing political U.S. households.
priority for all sides in just a Rising prices for health
few years. care goods and services
Medicare’s trustees have are expected to account
said the program will be for nearly half the spend-
insolvent in seven years, ing growth, said the report,
when its giant trust fund for with the rest driven by a mix
inpatient care won’t be of factors, including an ag-
able to fully cover expect- ing population and more
ed medical bills. intensive use of services.
Spelling out the econom- “The baby boom genera-
ic consequences of cur- tion is expected to shift
rent laws and policies, the from private health insur-
report serves as a reality ance coverage to Medi-
check on the political de- care coverage during the
bate over health care. That projection period,” said
debate ranges from Presi- Andrea Sisko, an author of
dent Donald Trump’s warn- the report.
ings about lurking “social- Spending on prescrip-
ism” to the suggestion from tion drugs is expected to
Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Ca- pick up again after a re-
lif., a 2020 contender, that cent slowdown, averag-
the U.S. can simply “move ing about 6 percent a year
on” to a new taxpayer-fi- from 2020 to 2027, the re-
nanced system that would port found.q