Direct Spending on Healthcare
A non-elderly family of four with at least one member in worse health and a $30,000 income on Medicaid coverage spends $1,200 per year (3% of their $38,376 after tax income) on health. This includes $400 (1% of their income) in out-of-pocket health spending, $0 (0% of their income) in health insurance premiums, and approximately $800 (2% of their income) in state and federal taxes that fund health programs.
Note: In this scenario, the family has a $30,000 income, but accounting for negative federal tax liability, their income would be approximately $38,376.
Additional Contributions by Employers
In this scenario, we estimate that the employer is contributing an additional $450 in Medicare payroll taxes, not shown in the chart above. When combined, this family’s spending on health care and the money spent by their employer on their behalf totals $1,650.
The Peterson Center on Healthcare and KFF are partnering to monitor how well the U.S. healthcare system is performing in terms of quality and cost.