Couples now need $225,000 to retire

This figure is a 4.7% increase over the 2007 estimate of $215,000, according to Fidelity.

A 65-year-old couple retiring this year will need about $225,000 to cover medical expenses in retirement, according to a health care cost estimate released by Boston-based Fidelity Investments.
This figure is a 4.7% increase over the 2007 estimate of $215,000.
The 2008 figure also assumes that the couple doesn’t have employer-sponsored retiree health care coverage and makes life expectancy assumptions of 17 years for a male and 20 years for a female.
The estimate also includes expenses associated with Medicare Part B and D premiums, as well as cost-sharing provisions, co-payments, co-insurance, deductibles and prescription drug out of pocket costs.
Since the health care estimate was calculated by Fidelity in 2002, the number has risen 41% with an average annual increase of 5.8%.
“With health care costs continuing to outpace wage increases and companies trimming retiree health benefits, financing health care has to be central to retirement planning,” said Brad Kimler, executive vice president at Fidelity in a statement.