Trustees: Medicare Will Be Exhausted by 2026

Two years later than previous estimates

Medicare's trust fund will start running out of money in 2026, two years later than the program's trustees estimated last year as the trend toward slower spending continues.

The trustees in the annual report noted that the long-term challenges to the program remain as the baby boomers reach retirement. They called on Congress to address the financial outlook "as soon as possible."

But the crisis is less imminent although Medicare and other entitlement spending will remain hot buttons in the coming fight over the budget and the debt ceiling.