Association for Public Policy Analysis & Management

The association of physical activity and far-reaching health benefits has been proved. In an effort to quantify direct benefits, this study estimates the percentage of out of pocket health care expenditures associated with levels of physical activity in the United States elderly population. The data including Physical Activity levels, out of pocket health expenditure, and covariates was collected from RAND HRS (Rand Health and Retirement Study) (2010). Health care expenditures for inactive (i.e., no physical activity) and insufficiently active adults (i.e., some physical activity but not enough to meet U.S. Department of Health and Human Services guidelines) were compared with active adults (i.e., ≥150 minutes/week moderate-intensity equivalent activity) using a cross sectional econometric model. Overall comparing to active people, 21.53% (95% CI:10.6, 28.2) of out of pocket health care expenditures were associated with inactivity and 5.3% (95% CI: -0.31, 10.8) of out of pocket health care expenditures were associated with inadequate physical activity (i.e., inactive and insufficiently active levels). Increasing elderly’s physical activity to meet guidelines brings upon healthier aging and may reduce U.S. healthcare expenditures.