<p>I don’t have the studies on hand, but I think afan is more or less correct. The changes are pretty small. I know that once folks hit ~age 60 their lifetime medical expenses are almost entirely the same no matter what their incoming health is. I think unhealthy people are more expensive at younger ages, though.</p>
<p>If memory serves, the studies in question are unequivocal that preventive care is not a cost-saver; the savings from healthier living are vastly offset by the expenses of that preventive care. (This is largely because preventive care on lifestyle issues is so hideously ineffective.)</p>
<p>Those studies do not address background economic factors like productivity. Then again, neither does health reform.</p>