In 2022, Medicare transfers in Cherokee County totaled $133.15 million, amounting to $2,768 per capita, or 21.3% of total government transfers, according to information from the Economic Innovation Group.
Among all government transfer programs, Medicare was the second smallest contributor in the county. Social Security was the largest contributor, totaling $179.37 million, equating to $3,729 per capita and making up 28.8% of total transfers.
Comparatively, Medicare transfers across Oklahoma amounted to $11.38 billion, ranking second highest among all transfer types within the state. This translates to an average of $2,831 per capita, or 24.3% of total government transfers. Including all transfer types, government transfer payments totaled $46.84 billion, accounting for 20.7% of residents’ total income, with an average of $11,654 per resident.
Medicaid was the second largest contributor in Cherokee County in 2022, accounting for $149.93 million, averaging $3,117 per capita, representing 24% of transfers. Income Maintenance transfers provided another $75.77 million, averaging $1,575 per capita and comprising 12.1% 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 17.8% of the population aged 65 and older, Cherokee County has a significant demand for programs like Social Security and Medicare. Despite this aid, the total per capita income in Cherokee County, excluding government transfers was $28,761, which is far below the county’s total income of $41,730, emphasizing the role of government transfers in overall income.
When comparing 2022 to the previous year, Cherokee County saw an increase in its Medicare transfer dependency by 0.2%, reflecting both rising transfer amounts and stagnating or insufficient other sources of income.
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 Cherokee County, reliance on government transfers has similarly increased from 18.5% (or $2,486 per capita) in 1970 to 31.1% (or $12,969 per capita) in 2022, reflecting broader national trends.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | Rank | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma County | 1 | 15.9% | 14.4% | 4.8% | 3.7% | 2.9% | 2.3% | $10,843 |
| Tulsa County | 2 | 15.3% | 15.1% | 5.1% | 3.7% | 2.7% | 1.9% | $10,697 |
| Cleveland County | 3 | 18.1% | 14.9% | 6.3% | 4.1% | 2.3% | 2% | $9,358 |
| Comanche County | 4 | 26% | 13.6% | 6.3% | 4.6% | 3.4% | 3.3% | $12,414 |
| Canadian County | 5 | 15.2% | 13.6% | 5.5% | 3.6% | 1.9% | 1.6% | $8,179 |
| Muskogee County | 6 | 36.4% | 17.1% | 9.7% | 8.8% | 7.7% | 4.7% | $16,264 |
| Rogers County | 7 | 20% | 17.2% | 7.8% | 4.5% | 2.9% | 1.9% | $10,559 |
| Pottawatomie County | 8 | 27.2% | 16.6% | 8.2% | 6.5% | 5.3% | 3.6% | $12,951 |
| Creek County | 9 | 26.9% | 18.5% | 9.2% | 6.6% | 4.9% | 3.1% | $12,981 |
| Wagoner County | 10 | 20.8% | 17.1% | 7.7% | 5.3% | 2.8% | 2% | $10,347 |
| Payne County | 11 | 20.5% | 13.2% | 6.7% | 4.8% | 3.6% | 2.2% | $9,307 |
| Garfield County | 12 | 24.2% | 16.8% | 7.8% | 6.1% | 4.1% | 3.2% | $11,807 |
| Le Flore County | 13 | 35.9% | 17.9% | 9.8% | 9.5% | 6.3% | 5.1% | $14,872 |
| Washington County | 14 | 13.5% | 20% | 4.8% | 3.3% | 2.3% | 1.7% | $13,032 |
| Carter County | 15 | 27.2% | 17% | 8.8% | 7.5% | 4.7% | 3.4% | $13,721 |
| Sequoyah County | 16 | 36.4% | 18.6% | 10.3% | 8.8% | 7.2% | 4.9% | $15,906 |
| Cherokee County | 17 | 31.1% | 17.8% | 8.9% | 6.6% | 7.5% | 3.8% | $12,969 |
| Kay County | 18 | 29.5% | 19.4% | 9.5% | 7.6% | 5.3% | 3.8% | $14,266 |
| Delaware County | 19 | 33.8% | 25.4% | 11.5% | 9.1% | 5.2% | 3.7% | $14,749 |
| Stephens County | 20 | 28.6% | 20.5% | 9.7% | 7.2% | 4.5% | 3.2% | $13,893 |
| Okmulgee County | 21 | 38.4% | 18.5% | 11% | 9.7% | 8.4% | 4.9% | $16,347 |
| Pittsburg County | 22 | 32.3% | 20.1% | 9.9% | 7.7% | 6.2% | 3.8% | $13,729 |
| Bryan County | 23 | 27.9% | 17.4% | 8.2% | 7.9% | 4.8% | 3.1% | $12,401 |
| Grady County | 24 | 21.7% | 16.9% | 7.7% | 5.6% | 3% | 2.5% | $10,445 |
| Mayes County | 25 | 32.5% | 18.8% | 10.2% | 7.9% | 6.6% | 3.7% | $14,569 |
| Pontotoc County | 26 | 26.3% | 17.2% | 7.4% | 6.8% | 6.1% | 3% | $13,941 |
| McClain County | 27 | 19.1% | 15.6% | 6.5% | 4.9% | 2.4% | 1.9% | $10,733 |
| Ottawa County | 28 | 33.5% | 18% | 10.6% | 7.4% | 6.7% | 4.3% | $15,522 |
| Osage County | 29 | 23.6% | 21.5% | 10.2% | 5.9% | 2.2% | 2.8% | $10,249 |
| Logan County | 30 | 18.6% | 17.5% | 7.2% | 3.9% | 2.5% | 2% | $8,991 |
| McCurtain County | 31 | 33.4% | 17.6% | 9.7% | 8.1% | 6.6% | 5.3% | $14,636 |
| Lincoln County | 32 | 28.1% | 19.3% | 9.5% | 7.5% | 4.2% | 3.2% | $12,744 |
| Caddo County | 33 | 33.7% | 15.9% | 9.2% | 9.9% | 6.2% | 4.2% | $14,926 |
| Garvin County | 34 | 29.5% | 18.1% | 9.4% | 8.1% | 5% | 3.5% | $14,609 |
| McIntosh County | 35 | 43.1% | 25.1% | 13.3% | 11.5% | 7.3% | 4.4% | $18,476 |
| Seminole County | 36 | 35.5% | 18.4% | 9.6% | 8.6% | 8.1% | 5.2% | $15,312 |
| Adair County | 37 | 37.3% | 15.8% | 9.2% | 8.3% | 9.6% | 6.7% | $15,523 |
| Custer County | 38 | 22.9% | 14.7% | 7.1% | 5.6% | 4.1% | 2.9% | $10,869 |
| Jackson County | 39 | 24.4% | 15.7% | 6.6% | 5.8% | 3.3% | 3.3% | $11,927 |
| Beckham County | 40 | 28.6% | 15.7% | 9.3% | 7.5% | 5.4% | 3.8% | $11,071 |
| Choctaw County | 41 | 41.8% | 20.8% | 11.5% | 11.9% | 7.5% | 6.2% | $16,507 |
| Pawnee County | 42 | 34.4% | 20.3% | 11.7% | 8.9% | 6.4% | 3.8% | $14,964 |
| Marshall County | 43 | 32.7% | 22.1% | 10.9% | 9.3% | 5.1% | 3.4% | $14,690 |
| Craig County | 44 | 37.2% | 19.6% | 11.2% | 8% | 9.5% | 4.5% | $16,214 |
| Woodward County | 45 | 25.8% | 17% | 9.2% | 7.1% | 3.4% | 3% | $10,460 |
| Hughes County | 46 | 31.5% | 18.4% | 9% | 8.5% | 7% | 3.4% | $14,737 |
| Haskell County | 47 | 38.4% | 20.7% | 11.3% | 10.3% | 6.5% | 5% | $16,964 |
| Murray County | 48 | 27.1% | 21% | 8.9% | 7.5% | 4.7% | 2.6% | $13,485 |
| Pushmataha County | 49 | 43.1% | 22.9% | 12.8% | 12.1% | 7.1% | 5.1% | $16,919 |
| Atoka County | 50 | 35.2% | 19.3% | 10.8% | 9.4% | 6.3% | 4.7% | $12,592 |
| Okfuskee County | 51 | 41% | 18.2% | 10.5% | 10.5% | 10.4% | 5% | $15,727 |
| Kingfisher County | 52 | 15.3% | 16.7% | 5.6% | 4.1% | 2.5% | 1.4% | $11,025 |
| Johnston County | 53 | 34.5% | 18.7% | 9.7% | 9.7% | 6.6% | 4.2% | $15,674 |
| Latimer County | 54 | 40.9% | 21.5% | 12.1% | 7.3% | 9.8% | 3.9% | $16,001 |
| Texas County | 55 | 12.4% | 12.6% | 4.2% | 3.1% | 1.5% | 2% | $7,491 |
| Nowata County | 56 | 33.5% | 19.4% | 11.2% | 8.2% | 6% | 4.5% | $14,796 |
| Noble County | 57 | 25.8% | 21.3% | 9.1% | 7% | 4.8% | 2.5% | $12,639 |
| Washita County | 58 | 31.1% | 19.8% | 9.9% | 8% | 5.3% | 3.9% | $12,450 |
| Kiowa County | 59 | 34.7% | 20.9% | 10.6% | 8.8% | 6.6% | 4.6% | $15,480 |
| Love County | 60 | 28.6% | 19% | 10.1% | 8.2% | 4% | 3.3% | $12,378 |
| Blaine County | 61 | 27.9% | 20.6% | 9.1% | 8.4% | 4.1% | 3.5% | $14,072 |
| Woods County | 62 | 22.1% | 17.7% | 7.6% | 6.6% | 2.6% | 1.9% | $10,553 |
| Jefferson County | 63 | 41.1% | 20.9% | 12.1% | 12.8% | 6.1% | 5.8% | $16,781 |
| Tillman County | 64 | 37.5% | 20.7% | 11.7% | 9.9% | 5.5% | 5.7% | $12,860 |
| Major County | 65 | 24.4% | 21.4% | 9.7% | 7% | 2.8% | 2.4% | $11,368 |
| Cotton County | 66 | 29.7% | 20.3% | 9.4% | 8.2% | 4.6% | 3.2% | $14,289 |
| Greer County | 67 | 40.9% | 17.4% | 11.3% | 14.3% | 6.1% | 4.7% | $13,915 |
| Coal County | 68 | 33.7% | 21.4% | 8.8% | 10.4% | 7.4% | 4% | $14,430 |
| Dewey County | 69 | 25.5% | 18.8% | 9.4% | 7.9% | 3.8% | 2.1% | $12,754 |
| Alfalfa County | 70 | 23.7% | 20% | 9.1% | 7.2% | 2.6% | 1.9% | $9,941 |
| Grant County | 71 | 24.6% | 22.5% | 9.8% | 7% | 3% | 1.9% | $12,207 |
| Beaver County | 72 | 14.7% | 20% | 5.6% | 4.9% | 1.4% | 1.4% | $9,672 |
| Ellis County | 73 | 21.9% | 24.3% | 8% | 6.7% | 3.2% | 1.8% | $13,196 |
| Harper County | 74 | 19.9% | 20.2% | 8.2% | 6.3% | 1.9% | 1.6% | $12,915 |
| Roger Mills County | 75 | 23.8% | 22.5% | 8.7% | 7.6% | 2.7% | 2.5% | $11,222 |
| Harmon County | 76 | 31.5% | 20.6% | 8.7% | 9.3% | 6.1% | 4.4% | $15,041 |
| Cimarron County | 77 | 16.2% | 24.9% | 6.4% | 5.5% | 1.1% | 1.7% | $11,592 |
