Health Care Affordability Problems by Income Level and Subsidy Eligibility in Medicare

How do health care affordability problems vary by income level and subsidy eligibility among Medicare beneficiaries?In this cross-sectional study of 24 398 Medicare beneficiaries, beneficiaries with lower income had lower out-of-pocket health care spending than Medicare beneficiaries with higher income, but they were more likely to experience affordability challenges. Beneficiaries with near low income (100%-150% of the federal poverty level [FPL]) reported the highest levels of affordability problems—54.0%—exceeding those in the low-income (<100% of FPL; 43.0%), middle-income (150%-400% of FPL; 45.2%), and high-income (>400% of FPL; 25.5%) groups.This study suggests that Medicare beneficiaries with near low income are particularly likely to experience affordability challenges, likely due to limited financial support.

Corresponding Author: Sungchul Park, PhD, Department of Health Policy and Management, College of Health Science, BK21 FOUR Rsungchul_park@korea.ac.kr).

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