KFF: Medicare Beneficiaries Spent an Average of 6,459 Dollars Out of Pocket on Health Care in 2023, Equal to 36 Percent of Average Social Security Income

A KFF fact brief published May 27, 2026, finds that the average Medicare beneficiary spent 6,459 dollars out of pocket on health care premiums and cost-sharing in 2023, equal to 36 percent of the average Social Security benefit per person that year. The figures reflect a program that provides broad insurance coverage but leaves significant costs for enrollees to bear directly.

One in four Medicare beneficiaries, roughly 16.5 million people, had total income below 24,600 dollars in 2024. Nearly 23 percent of beneficiaries relied on Social Security for 90 percent or more of their income. As a result, health spending consumed 14 percent of a typical Medicare household budget, compared with 6 percent for non-Medicare households.

Long-term care emerged as the sharpest unmet financial need. The median annual cost of a private nursing home room was 129,575 dollars in 2026, well above the median Medicare beneficiary income of 43,200 dollars. Round-the-clock home health aide services cost an estimated 305,760 dollars per year. Original Medicare covers neither long-term custodial nursing home care nor sustained home aide services.

Prescription drug costs compound the burden for beneficiaries without low-income subsidies, who averaged 872 dollars in Part D out-of-pocket expenses in 2023. Those in fair or poor health averaged 1,671 dollars. Dental services cost traditional Medicare enrollees a median 1,107 dollars annually, and hearing services cost a median 564 dollars, since Original Medicare generally excludes both.

One in five Medicare-age adults, 22 percent, reported carrying some form of medical or dental debt in 2022.