How much will a retired couple spend on health care? $240,000

Download PDF Copy

May 10 2012

This estimate, released by Fidelity Investments, reflects a 4 percent increase over medical bill projections for a couple that retired a year earlier. The amount doesn't include long-term care costs or over-the-counter drug expenses, among other things.

The Associated Press: Retired Couples May Need $240,000 For Health Care
Couples retiring this year can expect their medical bills throughout retirement to cost 4 percent more than those who retired a year ago, according to an annual projection released Wednesday by Fidelity Investments. The estimated $240,000 that a newly retired couple will need to cover health care expenses reflects the typical pattern of projected annual increases. The Boston-based company cut the estimate for the first time last year, citing President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. Medicare changes resulting from that plan are expected to gradually reduce many seniors' out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs (Jewell, 5/9).

Market Watch: Your Retirement Health-Care Tab Will Run $240,000
Retirement health-care costs are enough to cause a severe anxiety attack. Even with Medicare benefits, a 65-year-old couple retiring in 2012 will spend at least $240,000 in retirement, according to the latest estimate from Fidelity Investments. That doesn't include long-term-care costs, over-the-counter medications and most dental costs (Coombes, 5/9).

Bloomberg: Health Law Repeal To Cost Seniors $20,000, Fidelity Says
Retirees may pay about $20,000 more for medical care if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns the 2010 health care overhaul, Fidelity Investments said. A 65-year-old couple retiring this year will spend $240,000 out-of-pocket for care before their deaths, after accounting for Medicare coverage, Fidelity said in an annual estimate released today. That's an increase of $10,000 from last year and includes premiums and co-payments under Medicare and supplementary coverage called Medigap, the Boston-based mutual-fund manager said (Wayne, 5/9).

This article was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.