Four Ways the Supercommittee Can Trim Medicare Down to Size: View

Congress’s supercommittee, which is charged with cutting $1.5 trillion from the federal budget over the next decade, can’t prudently fulfill its mandate without tackling Medicare costs.

The federal health program for older Americans cost $469 billion in 2011, chewing up more than 12 percent of the federal budget. Its annual growth rate -- 4.7 percent per beneficiary during most of the past decade -- is unsustainable. The Urban Institute calculates that, without changes to the program, a couple turning 65 in 2030 is likely to collect $527,000 in benefits after having paid as little as $87,000 in Medicare taxes.