In light of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s shameless ad saying that the Paul Ryan-authored House Republican budget would “end Medicare,” it is worth noting that the Congressional Budget Office says that, in 2030, the Republican plan would give the average senior $18,276 in premium support to help purchase private health insurance ($15,000 in 2022, increased by 2.5 percent annually, to keep up with inflation). In addition, lower-income seniors would get another $9,504 to put into a medical savings account (an MSA) to use for additional medical expenses, bringing their annual tally of taxpayer-funded support to $27,780.
The Medicare Trustees Report (Table IV.C1) says that in 2030 there will be 80.424 million seniors enrolled in Medicare. Thus, in that year,
Spending $1,469,800,000,000 a year on Medicare — not counting Medicare MSA funding — and more each year from that point forward, is a strange way to “end” the program.
