Retiree Out-of-Pocket Health Care Spending: A Study of Expert Views, Consumer.

From the abstract:

This article explores this previously unexamined question of how much Americans expect to pay for their out-of-pocket health care spending in retirement.  To answer this question,we surveyed 2000 near retirees and retirees to gauge their expectations with regard to their own likely expenditures.  We then compared their responses to experts’ estimates. Our findings suggest that, surprisingly, many respondents have a reasonable sense of the magnitude of likely out-of-pocket expenditures, at least for the median, or typical, retiree.  However, we also found people struggle to understand potential variability in expenditures that might cause them to spend more than the typical retiree.  In particular, they underestimate how much personal health experience can affect individual spending.These results suggest that misperception of typical spending may not be a primary factor in retirees’ inability to finance out-of-pocket health care costs, but that misperception of the risk of spending above the median is likely an important factor.  We discuss educational,regulatory, and health policy implications of our findings.

Souce: Hoffman, Allison K.; & Jackson, Howell E.(2012). Retiree Out-of-Pocket Health Care Spending: A Study of Expert Views, Consumer. UC Los Angeles: UCLA School of Law. Retrieved from: http://escholarship.org/uc/item/3w7521mn

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