This paper examines public opinion surrounding health insurance and retirement. The data come from the EBRI/MGA 2012 Health Confidence Survey (HCS), which explores a broad spectrum of health care issues, including Americans’ satisfaction with health care today, their confidence in the future of the nation’s health care system and the Medicare program, as well as their attitudes toward certain aspects of health care reform. Earlier waves of the HCS are examined, as well. Health care expenses are a key component of spending in retirement. In 2009, health care accounted for 18 percent of expenses for people 85 and older, 15 percent of expenses for people ages 75-84, 12 percent of expenses for people ages 65-74, and 9 percent of expenses for people ages 50-64. Medicare beneficiaries ages 65 and older paid, on average, 13 percent of the cost of their health care services in 2009, while Medicare covered 59 percent, and private insurance covered 14 percent. The availability of health insurance may thus affect retirement decisions. More than one-half of Americans (54 percent) reported that access to health insurance in their retirement decision was extremely important, and another 28 percent reported it was very important in 2012. Overall, more than one-half of workers (53 percent) reported that they planned to work longer than they would like in order to continue receiving health insurance through work, although only 19 percent of retirees reported that they had worked longer than they would have liked in order to continue receiving health insurance through work. In 2003, 15 percent of workers reported that they would retire earlier than planned if they were guaranteed access to health insurance, but by 2012, 27 percent reported that they would retire earlier than planned under that condition. When it came to Medicare reform, more than 60 percent of the population opposed raising the eligibility age for full benefits to 68 and offering a reduced level of benefits at age 62. Twenty-seven percent somewhat opposed such a change in policy, while 36 percent strongly opposed it. However, strong opposition has fallen from 42 percent in 2005 to 36 percent in 2012. Only 1 in 10 (9 percent) strongly favored a policy that would raise the eligibility age for full benefits while lowering it for partial benefits, while 1 in 4 (26 percent) somewhat favored such a policy. The PDF for the above title, published in the January 2013 issue of EBRI Notes, also contains the fulltext of another January 2013 EBRI Notes article abstracted on SSRN: “Tax Preferences and Mandates: Is the Danish Savings Experience Applicable to the United States?”
