Hospital Insurance Trust Fund solvent until 2031, Medicare trustees project

The Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund will have sufficient funds to pay full benefits until 2031, according to the latest annual report by the Medicare Board of Trustees. That's three years longer than reported last year, mainly due to lower projected health care spending based on more recent data, trustees said. Known as Medicare Part A, the HI Trust Fund helps pay for inpatient hospital services, hospice care, and skilled nursing facility and home health services following hospital stays.

The Trustees report also projects lower expenditures for the Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, known as Medicare Part B, in part due to lower projected spending for Part B and D drugs. The federal government automatically adjusts SMI Trust Fund contributions and premiums annually to cover costs for the upcoming year.

The Congressional Budget Office, which conducts its own solvency analyses, recently projected that the HI Trust Fund would remain fully funded until 2033, two years longer than the new Medicare trustees report.