In 2022, Medicare transfers in Benton County totaled $596.21 million, amounting to $1,969 per capita, or 24.3% of total government transfers, according to information from the Economic Innovation Group.
Among all government transfer programs, Medicare was the second largest contributor in the county. Social Security was the largest contributor, totaling $935.34 million, equating to $3,088 per capita and making up 38.2% of total transfers.
Comparatively, Medicare transfers across Arkansas amounted to $8.94 billion, ranking second highest among all transfer types within the state. This translates to an average of $2,935 per capita, or 23.5% of total government transfers. Including all transfer types, government transfer payments totaled $38.05 billion, accounting for 23.7% of residents’ total income, with an average of $12,493 per resident.
Medicaid was the third largest contributor in Benton County in 2022, accounting for $401.17 million, averaging $1,325 per capita, representing 16.4% of transfers. Income Maintenance transfers provided another $213.07 million, averaging $704 per capita and comprising 8.7% of government support, making them the smallest contributors.
Government transfer payments are non-repayable funds provided by federal, state, or local governments to support individuals in need. These payments aim to stabilize economic conditions and provide financial support during hardships. Key programs include Social Security transfers (retirement benefits), Medicare transfers (healthcare for seniors), Medicaid transfers (healthcare for low-income individuals), and income maintenance transfers (financial assistance for basic needs).
With 13.8% of the population aged 65 and older, Benton County has a demand for programs like Social Security and Medicare. Despite this aid, the total per capita income in Benton County, excluding government transfers was $90,736, which is below the county’s total income of $98,822, emphasizing the role of government transfers in overall income.
When comparing 2022 to the previous year, Benton County saw no change in its Medicare transfer dependency.
Government transfers have long been a modest financial safety net, historically comprising only a small fraction of Americans’ income. However, since the 1970s—sometimes dubbed the “Great Transfer-mation”—dependency has surged from 8.2% (or $2,022 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,542 per capita) in 2022 nationwide. In Benton County, reliance on government transfers decreased from 12% (or $2,031 per capita) in 1970 to 8.2% (or $8,086 per capita) in 2022.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | Rank | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pulaski County | 1 | 20.3% | 16.7% | 6.4% | 4.3% | 4.8% | 2.2% | $12,481 |
| Benton County | 2 | 8.2% | 13.8% | 3.1% | 2% | 1.3% | 0.7% | $8,086 |
| Washington County | 3 | 17% | 12.4% | 5.8% | 3.7% | 3.6% | 1.8% | $8,313 |
| Garland County | 4 | 33.4% | 24.8% | 11.7% | 9.5% | 6.6% | 2.5% | $16,220 |
| Sebastian County | 5 | 25.4% | 17% | 8.2% | 6% | 5.9% | 2.6% | $12,297 |
| Saline County | 6 | 22.4% | 18.5% | 8.4% | 5.4% | 4.9% | 1.5% | $11,721 |
| Faulkner County | 7 | 22.3% | 13.9% | 6.9% | 4.4% | 6.4% | 1.9% | $10,742 |
| Craighead County | 8 | 24.6% | 14.1% | 7.1% | 5.5% | 6.9% | 2.8% | $11,398 |
| White County | 9 | 29.1% | 16.8% | 9.6% | 7.2% | 6.2% | 2.7% | $12,679 |
| Jefferson County | 10 | 37.2% | 18.9% | 10.4% | 8.2% | 9.1% | 4.6% | $15,163 |
| Lonoke County | 11 | 23.8% | 14.8% | 7.4% | 5.4% | 4.7% | 2% | $11,517 |
| Crawford County | 12 | 30.8% | 17.9% | 10.5% | 7.4% | 6.6% | 2.8% | $12,872 |
| Pope County | 13 | 28.4% | 16.6% | 9.3% | 6.5% | 6.7% | 2.5% | $11,819 |
| Baxter County | 14 | 38.6% | 30.7% | 15.5% | 10.9% | 5.7% | 2.1% | $17,155 |
| Crittenden County | 15 | 31.2% | 15.1% | 8.5% | 6.3% | 9.4% | 4.6% | $13,728 |
| Greene County | 16 | 29.8% | 16.6% | 9.4% | 7.1% | 7.5% | 3% | $12,394 |
| Mississippi County | 17 | 32.7% | 15.8% | 9% | 7.1% | 9.6% | 4.6% | $14,221 |
| Union County | 18 | 28.4% | 19.5% | 9.7% | 6.8% | 6.8% | 2.8% | $14,558 |
| Miller County | 19 | 31.1% | 17.3% | 9.7% | 7.7% | 6.9% | 3.9% | $12,416 |
| Boone County | 20 | 31.9% | 21% | 11.9% | 7.5% | 6.4% | 2.6% | $13,514 |
| Independence County | 21 | 30% | 18.1% | 9.7% | 7.6% | 7.5% | 2.5% | $13,283 |
| Hot Spring County | 22 | 35.6% | 19.8% | 12% | 8.7% | 8.8% | 3% | $13,405 |
| Cleburne County | 23 | 32.7% | 27.4% | 13% | 8.7% | 5.4% | 2.1% | $15,833 |
| Poinsett County | 24 | 37.5% | 18.4% | 10.4% | 9.7% | 11.1% | 4% | $15,958 |
| Carroll County | 25 | 29.8% | 24% | 11.7% | 7.5% | 4.9% | 2.4% | $12,426 |
| Ouachita County | 26 | 33.1% | 21.5% | 10.8% | 8% | 8.3% | 3.2% | $15,898 |
| St. Francis County | 27 | 43.2% | 17.9% | 10.8% | 9.4% | 13.5% | 6.1% | $15,410 |
| Logan County | 28 | 39.3% | 20.5% | 11.8% | 8.5% | 12.4% | 3.2% | $16,030 |
| Sharp County | 29 | 42.1% | 25.6% | 13.6% | 12% | 8.2% | 3.1% | $18,393 |
| Columbia County | 30 | 31.4% | 17.7% | 9.9% | 6.9% | 8.9% | 3.4% | $14,204 |
| Johnson County | 31 | 34.1% | 17.7% | 11.5% | 7.1% | 8.1% | 3.9% | $12,101 |
| Ashley County | 32 | 38.2% | 21.9% | 12.7% | 10% | 9.4% | 3.4% | $17,085 |
| Clark County | 33 | 34.1% | 16.6% | 9.7% | 6.8% | 11.5% | 2.7% | $14,449 |
| Conway County | 34 | 29.5% | 20% | 9.9% | 6.7% | 7.2% | 2.8% | $13,997 |
| Phillips County | 35 | 43.2% | 21% | 10.4% | 8% | 15% | 6.8% | $19,144 |
| Hempstead County | 36 | 34.5% | 19.1% | 10.1% | 7.5% | 10.3% | 4% | $14,794 |
| Randolph County | 37 | 36.6% | 19.2% | 10.4% | 10% | 9% | 3.2% | $14,994 |
| Polk County | 38 | 36.7% | 23.3% | 13% | 9% | 6.9% | 3.3% | $14,553 |
| Yell County | 39 | 31.4% | 18.3% | 9.8% | 7.8% | 8.1% | 3.1% | $13,817 |
| Marion County | 40 | 41.6% | 29.4% | 16.4% | 9.7% | 7.7% | 3% | $15,283 |
| Van Buren County | 41 | 42.4% | 26.3% | 15.8% | 11% | 8.3% | 3% | $16,315 |
| Lawrence County | 42 | 37.9% | 19.2% | 10.8% | 9.5% | 10.8% | 3.3% | $15,999 |
| Drew County | 43 | 31.1% | 18.3% | 9.2% | 6.9% | 8.7% | 3.1% | $14,482 |
| Arkansas County | 44 | 25.3% | 20.4% | 8.2% | 6.1% | 6.9% | 2.4% | $14,626 |
| Jackson County | 45 | 31% | 18.2% | 8.8% | 8.8% | 8.1% | 3% | $14,248 |
| Cross County | 46 | 34.4% | 18.6% | 10.6% | 8.1% | 9.4% | 3.6% | $14,129 |
| Franklin County | 47 | 31.9% | 20.4% | 11.3% | 7.7% | 6.7% | 2.6% | $13,418 |
| Clay County | 48 | 36.4% | 21.4% | 11.2% | 9.9% | 9% | 2.9% | $15,833 |
| Grant County | 49 | 26.2% | 18.7% | 9.4% | 6.7% | 5.1% | 1.9% | $11,996 |
| Madison County | 50 | 27.5% | 19.5% | 9.4% | 8% | 4.9% | 2.6% | $12,219 |
| Stone County | 51 | 45% | 28% | 16% | 12% | 9.1% | 3.5% | $16,586 |
| Izard County | 52 | 42.5% | 25% | 15.4% | 9.3% | 9.4% | 3.2% | $14,726 |
| Chicot County | 53 | 41.7% | 22.2% | 10.4% | 9.3% | 14.6% | 4.6% | $18,913 |
| Desha County | 54 | 35.7% | 20.2% | 9.6% | 8.4% | 10.9% | 4.2% | $17,200 |
| Fulton County | 55 | 43.9% | 25.8% | 15.4% | 10% | 9.8% | 3.5% | $14,931 |
| Bradley County | 56 | 36.9% | 19.4% | 9.3% | 8.4% | 13.5% | 3.5% | $17,997 |
| Howard County | 57 | 30.6% | 18.9% | 9.7% | 7.6% | 7.7% | 3.3% | $14,478 |
| Sevier County | 58 | 25.4% | 14.6% | 7.4% | 6% | 6.1% | 3.2% | $11,372 |
| Little River County | 59 | 35.4% | 21.7% | 12.4% | 10.2% | 6.5% | 3.1% | $14,754 |
| Pike County | 60 | 37% | 20.8% | 11.7% | 10% | 9.5% | 3.2% | $15,272 |
| Lincoln County | 61 | 34.5% | 15.1% | 9.8% | 9.3% | 9.7% | 3.3% | $11,398 |
| Perry County | 62 | 31.5% | 21.3% | 11.1% | 7.7% | 6.8% | 2.7% | $13,939 |
| Nevada County | 63 | 41.3% | 21.7% | 11.6% | 9.4% | 13.4% | 3.5% | $16,705 |
| Searcy County | 64 | 49.1% | 25.8% | 16.4% | 13% | 11.3% | 3.9% | $16,502 |
| Scott County | 65 | 33.3% | 21.6% | 11.7% | 6.5% | 7.9% | 4.1% | $13,282 |
| Montgomery County | 66 | 39.4% | 27.4% | 14.6% | 9% | 8.7% | 3% | $14,937 |
| Lee County | 67 | 42.4% | 20.2% | 10.9% | 8.2% | 15.2% | 6% | $15,185 |
| Dallas County | 68 | 41.8% | 25.8% | 12.3% | 8.6% | 15.2% | 3.4% | $19,670 |
| Monroe County | 69 | 44% | 24% | 12.8% | 10.1% | 13% | 4.7% | $17,641 |
| Prairie County | 70 | 32.7% | 24% | 11.2% | 8.5% | 7.9% | 2.5% | $14,235 |
| Newton County | 71 | 41.8% | 27.4% | 15.3% | 10.3% | 8.8% | 3.4% | $15,817 |
| Cleveland County | 72 | 29% | 21.6% | 9.4% | 7.2% | 7.1% | 2.2% | $14,855 |
| Woodruff County | 73 | 35.5% | 24.6% | 10.2% | 9.4% | 10.2% | 3.5% | $17,877 |
| Lafayette County | 74 | 32.1% | 25.8% | 10.5% | 7.7% | 8.3% | 3.2% | $15,957 |
| Calhoun County | 75 | 28.1% | 22.8% | 10.5% | 7.3% | 4.9% | 2.3% | $13,217 |
