Our Bloated Federal Government

 Some numbers to think about.

In 2024 Russia’s federal government collected revenues of $360 billion and spent $390 billion (Source Wikipedia, Centre for Eastern Studies & Statista).A substantial portion (over 20 percent?) of the expenditures were for financing the war with Ukraine.  The total expenditures work out to $2,700 per Russian.

 

In 2024 our federal government collected revenues of $5,082 billion and spent $6,941 billion. National defense consumed 13.1 percent of the expenditures. The expenditures work out to $20,700 per US resident. Why do we need 7.7 times as much federal government as the Russians?

 

In 1964, before President Lyndon Johnson started the War on Poverty, federal expenditures were $5,700/resident, in inflation adjusted dollars. Why do we need 3.6 times as much federal government as we got by with in 1964? The War on Poverty has cost taxpayers over $20 TRILLION.

 

Since 2014, when Obamacare took effect, the inflation adjusted cost of Medicaid and Health Insurance Assistance has risen from $347 billion to $669 billion. Before 1965 this program did not exist, now it costs each of us $2,000 a year to fund it. These are just two of the scores of federal welfare programs.

 

In 2019, pre-COVID, the federal government spent $78 billion on the SNAP program (food stamps), by 2024 that number had increased to $100 billion. Before 1965 this program did not exist, now it costs each of us $300 a year to fund it. Why has the cost of the food stamp program increased by 28 percent in 5 years? Inflation only accounts for 20 percent of that increase.

 

As an aside, the “War on Drugs”, another failed federal program, started in 1971. Rather than blame Mexico for our drug use problems, why don’t we clean up our own mess. Are we not capable of learning from Prohibition? As long as there is a huge US market for illegal drugs there will be someone selling them. Either legalize the drugs or start incarcerating those who are buying them.

 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_budget_of_Russia#:~:text=Expenses%2025.1%20trillion%20rubles%20(%24,trillion%20rubles%20(%24352%20billion).  2024 revenues $352 billion, expenses $357 billion, deficit $4.3 billion. in 2023 they had a $5.9 billion budget surplus

 

https://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/osw-commentary/2024-11-22/russias-budget-2025-war-above-all  November 2024 article. 2024 revenues 36.1 trillion roubles ($360 billion), expenses 39.4 trillion roubles ($390 billion).

 

https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/russia/#economy  2022 revenues $777 billion, expenditures $719 billion

 

https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/united-states/#economy  2022 revenues $5,038 billion, expenditures $6,306 billion

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1319777/federal-budget-income-and-spend-russia/  2023 income 29.1 trillion rubles, 32.4 trillion rubles

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/262742/countries-with-the-highest-military-spending/ 

2023 Military Spending in billion US dollars

USA 916

China 296

Russia 109

India 83.6

Saudi Arabia 75.8

United Kingdom 74.9

Germany 66.8

Ukraine 64.8

France 61.3

Japan 50.2

South Korea 47.9

 

https://www.kff.org/medicaid/state-indicator/total-medicaid-spending/?currentTimeframe=0&selectedRows=%7B%22wrapups%22:%7B%22united-states%22:%7B%7D%7D%7D&sortModel=%7B%22colId%22:%22Location%22,%22sort%22:%22asc%22%7D   Total 2023 Medicaid spending $880.0 billion

 

https://www.kff.org/medicaid/issue-brief/medicaid-enrollment-spending-growth-fy-2024-2025/  one in five people living in the US is receiving some type of Medicaid benefit.

 

https://www.kff.org/from-drew-altman/again-no-medicaid/  Medicaid covers 81 million people. Four in ten babies delivered are covered by Medicaid.

 

https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2025/01/08/fourth-snapshot-marketplace-open-enrollment.html  24 million have selected health coverage in the ACA marketplace.

 

https://www.pgpf.org/article/how-does-the-federal-government-subsidize-healthcare-under-the-aca-and-what-does-it-cost/  2023 ACA subsidies $91 billion. Total $1.6 trillion. Medicare 54%, Medicaid 39% ($624 billion), ACA 6%($91 billion), Other 1%

 

2025 Budget Table 15.1 – 2024 spending billions of dollars; Medicaid 567.2, Health Insurance Assistance (ACA?) 101.6. Obamacare signed in 2010. ACA came into force in 2014. 2013 Medicaid 265.4, health insurance assistance 2.4. (265.4+2.4)*1.2422/.9593=346.8(2024$)

(567.2+101.6)*1000/334.9=$1,997/capita

 

Russia 2023 population 143.8 million, US population 334.9 million

 

https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2024/june/snap-spending-rose-and-fell-with-pandemic-era-changes-to-benefit-amounts  SNAP spending

 

https://fapri.missouri.edu/publications/food-policy-bites-oct-2023/ SNAP spending 2022 $120 billion, 2023 $112 billion

 

https://www.cato.org/blog/snap-spending-doubles-127-billion  SNAP spending 2019 $63 billion, 2023 $127 billion,

 

https://fns-prod.azureedge.us/sites/default/files/resource-files/snap-annualsummary-1.pdf   SNAP spending 2019 35,702,000 recipients, $60,382 million; 2024 41,694,000 recipients, $99,896 million. 60.382 billion*1.2422*1.0391=77.9

 

2025 Budget file hist01z1Table 1.1 2024 receipts $5,082 billion, outlays $6,941 billion. 1964 actual receipts $112.6 billion, actual outlays $118.5 billion.

 

2025 Budget file hist01z3Table 1.3 1964 chained dollar receipts 2017$ 827.4 billion, ourtlays in 2017$ 890.1 billion. Convert to 2024$ 827.4*1.2422=$1,028, outlays 870.9*1.2422=$1,082.  population 190.9 million  outlays $5,668/person,

 

https://aspe.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/private/pdf/154286/50YearTrends.pdf  In 1964 19.0% of our population was classified as living in poverty. It dropped to 11.1% in 1973 before rising to 15.2 % in 1984. The poverty level is currently 11,5%.

 

https://www.kff.org/statedata/election-state-fact-sheets/missouri/#:~:text=Total%20Medicaid%20spending%20in%20fiscal,78.5%25%20of%20these%20Medicaid%20costs.  Missouri 2022 Medicaid spending was $15.9 billion, the federal government paid 78.5% of this cost.

 

https://mffh.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Missouri-Medicaid-Basics-2023.pdf  The enacted state budget for SFY 2023 appropriated approximately $16.9 billion for MO HealthNet across the various departments. Yet only $3.1 billion of this cost comes from state general revenue. The majority of Medicaid financing, $10.6 billion, comes from federal funds. The remaining balance of MO HealthNet financing derives from several nongovernmental sources, including provider taxes (e.g., hospitals and nursing homes), premiums, and tobacco funds (see “Sources of MO HealthNet Funding” for more information).

In SFY 2022, approximately $12.6 billion was spent on Medicaid services in Missouri. Managed care, mental health services, pharmacy, hospitals, and nursing facilities each account for more than 10% of spending (see “MO HealthNet Spending by Key Component” for more information).

 

Missouri 2023 population 6.196 million

 

https://publichealth.wustl.edu/items/missouri-medicaid-spending-growth-due-to-enrollment-inflation-and-utilization-increases/  Missouri Medicaid Spending

2011

 

https://dss.mo.gov/re/pdf/fsd_mhdmr/1210.pdf 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Out of Control Medicaid Spending

  The Republicans appear ready to cave on Medicaid spending, and leave the spending floodgates wide open. The following is a history of the astronomical growth of federal and state Medicaid spending. A generation ago, in 2000, total federal and state Medicaid spending was $206 billion. Remember the promises of how Obamacare was going to save money? In 2010, the year Obamacare was signed into law, total federal and state Medicaid spending was $402 billion. In pre-COVID 2018 total federal and state Medicaid spending was $616 billion. Rather than save taxpayers money it cost us over 50 percent more in just 8 years. In 2024 total state and federal Medicaid spending was $919 billion. Another near 50 percent increase in only 6 years, and over double what it was before Obamacare. There are 133 million households in the US. Of course not all of them pay taxes, but it they did, in 2024 each household would have had to write the government a check for nearly $7,000 just to pay for ...
Read more

NASCAR - Pathetic

Image
 Kathy and I used to watch almost every NASCAR race on TV. Over the years our enthusiasm has waned dramatically. NASCAR's continual tinkering with the rules to make cars equal is a crime against auto racing. Their change from "over the air" TV to pay TV left us outside, since we weren't willing to pay for some of the channels they broadcast on. We did watch last Sunday's race at Daytona. I almost want to vomit when I hear the announcers breathlessly talk about the speeds during the race. It would be funny were it not such a bunch of hogwash. Chase Briscoe won this years poll with an average lap speed of 182.745 mph. This sounds fast, if you have no knowledge of NASCAR. The last time a Daytona 500 NASCAR pole was won with a this slow a lap was in 1971 when A.J. Foyt won the pole with a lap of 182.744 mph. 54 years of improvements in aerodynamics, suspensions, tires and NASCAR is back to the speeds are the same.  Foyt's 1971 pole winning Mercury In 1984, 1985, 1...
Read more

Why Are So Few Men Working?

 Below are some highlights from reports about how lazy US born people have become. At the end of these comments there are links to two articles that contain the data. The share of U.S.-born, working-age (16 to 64) men not in the labor force has increased for six decades. It was 11.3 percent in April 1960, 16.9 percent in April 2000, and 22.1 percent in April 2024. Among “prime-age” U.S.-born men (25 to 54), the group most likely to work, the share not in the labor force was 4 percent in April 1960, 8.5 percent in 2000 and 11.6 percent in 2024. The share not in the labor force for U.S.-born Black, white, and Hispanic men has deteriorated significantly over the decades. The number of U.S.-born men (16 to 64) not in the labor force increased by 13.2 million from 1960 to 2024. At the same time, the number of working-age immigrant men in the labor force increased by 14.1 million. The total number of U.S.-born men and women (16 to 64) not in the labor force was 43 million in April 2024 —...
Read more