“The most important observation from these two figures was that per-person out-of-pocket recurring health care expenses were not any different between single and couple households,” EBRI says. The research organization also says recurring health care expenses generally do not increase with age.
Non-recurring health care expenses, however, cost single households an average of $7,122 but couple households only $3,161 during that two-year period. And those expenses increase with age; for households ages 85 and older, singles spent an average of $13,355 on non-recurring health care expenses, and couples, $8,530. EBRI Research Associate Sudipto Banerjee says the reason these kinds of medical expenses are lower for couples could be because one of the spouses acts as a caregiver.