Consumer Expenditures Vary by Age

The Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) publishes information classified by characteristics such as income, household size, and age of the reference person. This article uses 2013 CE data to examine the relationship between age and consumer expenditures. This relationship is important because the aging of the baby-boom generation will influence the overall level and composition of consumer spending in the years to come

Movies, Music, and Sports: U.S. Entertainment Spending, 2008-2013

[Excerpt] This Beyond the Numbers article examines entertainment spending from 2008 to 2013 and breaks the spending down into its four parts: fees and admissions; audio and visual equipment and services; pets, toys, hobbies, and playground equipment; and other entertainment supplies, equipment, and services. This article also analyzes the relationships between entertainment spending and 1) income, 2) education, and 3) age

New Education Classification Better Reflects Income and Spending Patterns in the Consumer Expenditure Survey

An individual’s level of education and associated earnings profoundly influence spending patterns. Published Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) data shown average expenditures, income, and other consumer unit (CU) characteristics classified by education of the reference person. With the release of calendar year 2012 CE data on September 10, 2013, the education of reference person classification was replaced by the highest education level of any member in the consumer unit. The major reason for this change is that the highest level of education attained by any household member more accurately reflects income and spending patterns than does the education level of the reference person only. For example, data from the Census Bureau show that the proportion of married couples where the wife is the more educated spouse increased during the 1996–2010 period. This means that the education level in families where the husband is designated as the reference person could be understated. Table 1 shows selected characteristics, mean annual expenditures, and expenditure shares for consumer units classified by the highest level of education of any CU member, which is the new breakdown. Table 2 presents the same data classified by education of the reference person, which is the old breakdown. (Both tables show data for 2012.

Household Healthcare Spending in 2014

This Beyond the Numbers article uses 2014 CE data to examine household spending on healthcare and its components. The article first examines the relationship between healthcare spending and household pretax income and then the relationship between healthcare spending and the age of the reference person

Hispanic Household Spending in 2015

Although the Hispanic population has grown more slowly in recent years, it still exerts a powerful influence on the U.S. economy. Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) data show that, in 2015, households with a reference person of Hispanic or Latino origin were 13 percent of the sample, compared with 12.2 percent in 2010 and 10.6 percent in 2005. This Beyond the Numbers article uses 2015 CE data to examine spending by households with a Hispanic or Latino reference person, compared with households without a Hispanic or Latino reference person. (In the article, for convenience, “Hispanic or Latino” is shortened to “Hispanic.”) Spending by Hispanic households is compared with spending by households with a non-Hispanic White reference person and spending by households with a non-Hispanic Black or African-American reference person

A Closer Look at the Spending Patterns of Older Americans

The aging of the United States population will influence the economy for many years to come. The Census Bureau projects that in 2050, the population aged 65 and older will be 83.7 million, almost double its estimate of 43.1 million in 2012. This article examines the spending patterns of households with a reference person age 55 and older. Age 55 was chosen because the article focuses on spending changes that occur as household members age and transition to retirement as well as during retirement. Understanding expenditure patterns in later life is crucial to evaluating financial security in retirement. This analysis uses integrated data from the 2014 Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE), which separates the 55-and-older age range into three groups: ages 55–64, 65–74, and 75 and older

How Parents Use Time and Money

[Excerpt] This article examines weekday resource allocation decisions of married couples with a husband employed full time and with children under 18. These decisions relate, among other things, to working for pay; doing unpaid household work; purchasing services such as childcare, laundry and drycleaning, and food away from home; and eating out. Information about spending decisions was obtained from the 2009 Consumer Expenditure Survey (CE) and information about time use was obtained from the 2009 American Time Use Survey (ATUS). Results show that, Regardless of employment status, wives were more likely than husbands to spend time in household activities. On an average weekday, married fathers spent more time working than married mothers did, even married mothers employed full time. The proportion of families reporting childcare expenses and the average amount spent by those reporting were highest for families with full-time working wives and lowest for families with wives not employed for pay. Consistent with other research, working-wife families did not spend more on housekeeping and laundry services than did families with wives not employed for pay. Families with full-time working wives spent the greatest dollar amount on food away from home, but there was no significant difference in spending between families with part-time working wives and families with wives not employed for pay

Metatranscriptomic Sequencing of a Cyanobacterial Soil-Surface Consortium with and without a Diverse Underlying Soil Microbiome.

Soil surface consortia are easily observed and sampled, allowing examination of their interactions with soil microbiomes. Here, we present metatranscriptomic sequences from Dark Green 1 (DG1), a cyanobacterium-based soil surface consortium, in the presence and absence of an underlying soil microbiome and/or urea

Protocol for a multi-centre, parallel-arm, 12-month, randomised controlled trial of arthroscopic surgery versus conservative care for femoroacetabular impingement syndrome (FASHIoN)

INTRODUCTION: Femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) syndrome is a recognised cause of young adult hip pain. There has been a large increase in the number of patients undergoing arthroscopic surgery for FAI; however, a recent Cochrane review highlighted that there are no randomised controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating treatment effectiveness. We aim to compare the clinical and cost-effectiveness of arthroscopic surgery versus best conservative care for patients with FAI syndrome. METHODS: We will conduct a multicentre, pragmatic, assessor-blinded, two parallel arm, RCT comparing arthroscopic surgery to physiotherapy-led best conservative care. 24 hospitals treating NHS patients will recruit 344 patients over a 26-month recruitment period. Symptomatic adults with radiographic signs of FAI morphology who are considered suitable for arthroscopic surgery by their surgeon will be eligible. Patients will be excluded if they have radiographic evidence of osteoarthritis, previous significant hip pathology or previous shape changing surgery. Participants will be allocated in a ratio of 1:1 to receive arthroscopic surgery or conservative care. Recruitment will be monitored and supported by qualitative intervention to optimise informed consent and recruitment. The primary outcome will be pain and function assessed by the international hip outcome tool 33 (iHOT-33) measured 1-year following randomisation. Secondary outcomes include general health (short form 12), quality of life (EQ5D-5L) and patient satisfaction. The primary analysis will compare change in pain and function (iHOT-33) at 12 months between the treatment groups, on an intention-to-treat basis, presented as the mean difference between the trial groups with 95% CIs. The study is funded by the Health Technology Assessment Programme (13/103/02). ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval is granted by the Edgbaston Research Ethics committee (14/WM/0124). The results will be disseminated through open access peer-reviewed publications, including Health Technology Assessment, and presented at relevant conferences. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN64081839; Pre-results

Accrual of Older Patients With Breast Cancer to Alliance Systemic Therapy Trials Over Time: Protocol A151527

Despite increasing awareness of accrual challenges, it is unknown if accrual of older patients to breast cancer treatment trials is improving