Posted by Michael Wonder on 11 Feb 2020
Many in U.S. worry about affording health care in retirement
11 February 2020 - Nearly half of Americans aged 50 to 64 worry they won’t be able to afford healthcare when they retire, while more than two-thirds are concerned that federal policy changes will affect their current health insurance, a new survey finds.
Survey participants who worried about the cost of health insurance now or during retirement were nearly three times more likely to avoid medical care or filling a prescription than those with more confidence in their ability to pay for healthcare, researchers report in JAMA Network Open.
“Many individuals, 45% in their 50s and 60s, are not confident they can afford healthcare in retirement,” said lead author Dr. Renuka Tipirmeni of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. “They are also three times as likely to avoid healthcare services. This is huge compared to what we were expecting.”
