Slowing the Growth of Medicare

November 11, 2015
Demian Brady
CANDIDATE:
John Kasich

In the debate, Governor John Kasich promoted his plan to slow the growth of Medicare spending. Under the Congressional Budget Office's latest budget data, the federal government spent $639 billion on Medicare in FY 2015. By 2025, expenditures are projected to grow by 7 percent per year, and will reach $1.22 trillion. Kasich's plan would slow the growth starting in FY 2019. Through FY 2025, outlays would increase by 6 percent per year, reaching $1.06 trillion. His website provides only the following details of how the slow down would be achieved: "Increasing care coordination through Medicare Advantage, as well as other changes like reforming payment practices to increase value and quality." 

 If the reforms are implemented and maintained -- as we just saw yet again with the Bipartisan Budget Act, lawmakers do not long abide by budget restraints -- spending would be reduced by $101 billion through FY 2021, and an additional $427 billion through 2025. Compared to CBO's baseline, outlays would be 4 percent lower over the first several years, and 13 percent lower in 2025.

Demian Brady

Director of Research

Demian Brady is the Director of Research for the National Taxpayers Union Foundation. His responsibilities include producing commentaries and studies on fiscal issues, as well as managing NTUF's BillTally program (which tracks the impact of legislation on the size of the federal budget), State of the Union analysis, and more. Demian's research has been cited in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Times. In addition, he has written on a number of budget-related issues for both NTU and NTUF. Mr. Brady resided and worked in Columbus, Ohio before moving to Washington, DC in 1998. He earned an M.A. in Political Science from American University. He received a B.A. in Russian Area Studies from Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. 

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