Profile of Medicare Beneficiaries by Race and Ethnicity: A Chartpack

(Source – Kaiser Family Foundation)

Medicare provides health insurance coverage for 55 million people ages 65 and over and younger adults with permanent disabilities. As the number of black and Hispanic beneficiaries has grown over time, the program has played an increasingly vital role as a source of coverage for people of color. Before the enactment of Medicare in 1965, health coverage and care was not easily accessible or affordable for many seniors, and perhaps least so for black seniors, who were often unable to receive treatment in the same facilities as whites because hospitals were segregated. The establishment of Medicare, in conjunction with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, was transformative in desegregating the nation’s health care system for patients and providers and in improving access to care. Read more…

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