1
: from cash on hand : with one's own money rather than with money from another source (such as an insurance company)
With so many people willing to pay out of pocket most insurance companies do not pay for the procedure, because they regard it as "cosmetic" …—
Kenneth Chang
Kenneth Chang2
chiefly British
a
: in the position of having lost money
On Oct. 7, the government suddenly pulled the plug on Railtrack PLC, the privatized owner of Britain's railway infrastructure, leaving the company's 250,000 shareholders out of pocket.—Kerry Capell
Kerry Capell
b
: out of funds : without money
My wife and I are already consumers of Straus's organic yogurt, butter, cream and ice cream, although I admit when I am feeling out of pocket I opt for a slightly cheaper competitor.—Larry Gallagher
Larry GallagherExamples of out-of-pocket in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the WebBloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 20 Apr. 2024
Besides infant mortality, the report evaluated adult obesity, cancer rates and screenings, out-of-pocket medical spending, preventable hospitalizations, emergency room visits and the cost of health care.
—Eleanore Catolico, Detroit Free Press, 19 Apr. 2024
FSAs are an arrangement in which employees can set aside up to $3,200 of their pre-tax income annually to pay for out-of-pocket medical costs.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
Insurance doesn’t cover any of them, and out-of-pocket costs range from $40 to $100.
—Lauryn Higgins, Health, 19 Apr. 2024
This year, it’s estimated that taxpayers will spend $104 billion on out-of-pocket expenses associated with preparing and submitting tax forms, according to a recent report by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation.
—Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
Even patients whose out-of-pocket costs were between $10 and $50 were 38% less likely to buy the medicine regularly for a full year, the team found.
—Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2024
An individual taxpayer is estimated to spend 13 hours and $240 in out-of-pocket costs to prepare and file an annual tax return, according to the Taxpayer Advocate.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 15 Apr. 2024
In Tucson, the public utility spent over $30 million out-of-pocket to deal with PFAS contamination across its distribution area.
—The Arizona Republic, 10 Apr. 2024
Berkeley Lovelace Jr., NBC News, 14 Mar. 2023
Biden will also propose benefit changes that includes limiting to $2 how much a Medicare recipient must pay out of pocket for certain generic drugs.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 9 Mar. 2023
When the coupon expires, she and other patients will be forced to pay out of pocket.
—ABC News, 23 Feb. 2023
For people in those situations, paying for health care out of pocket or applying to public programs are not viable options.
—Sarah Lapidus, The Arizona Republic, 30 Dec. 2022
When starting a varsity team just depended on procuring a mat, Benson paid thousands out of pocket.
—Aj Traub, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Dec. 2022
Wegovy, for example, costs over $1,300 per month and is taken over the long term, so many patients can’t afford to pay for it out of pocket.
—Elaine Chen and Isabella Cueto, STAT, 29 Dec. 2022
Visitors would need to pay out of pocket, with the Financial Times reporting one couple paid $170 each for a dose.
—Bloomberg, Fortune, 28 Dec. 2022
The costs are usually rolled into the mortgage, meaning borrowers won't have to pay them out of pocket — though this does reduce the loan amount available to them.
—Becca Stanek, The Week, 19 Dec. 2022
Adjective
More than half of the 20 million who’ve signed up for Obamacare in 2024 complain of high monthly costs and out-of-pocket spending.
—Bloomberg Opinion, Twin Cities, 20 Apr. 2024
Besides infant mortality, the report evaluated adult obesity, cancer rates and screenings, out-of-pocket medical spending, preventable hospitalizations, emergency room visits and the cost of health care.
—Eleanore Catolico, Detroit Free Press, 19 Apr. 2024
FSAs are an arrangement in which employees can set aside up to $3,200 of their pre-tax income annually to pay for out-of-pocket medical costs.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
Insurance doesn’t cover any of them, and out-of-pocket costs range from $40 to $100.
—Lauryn Higgins, Health, 19 Apr. 2024
This year, it’s estimated that taxpayers will spend $104 billion on out-of-pocket expenses associated with preparing and submitting tax forms, according to a recent report by the National Taxpayers Union Foundation.
—Nicole Goodkind, CNN, 15 Apr. 2024
Even patients whose out-of-pocket costs were between $10 and $50 were 38% less likely to buy the medicine regularly for a full year, the team found.
—Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times, 15 Apr. 2024
An individual taxpayer is estimated to spend 13 hours and $240 in out-of-pocket costs to prepare and file an annual tax return, according to the Taxpayer Advocate.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 15 Apr. 2024
In Tucson, the public utility spent over $30 million out-of-pocket to deal with PFAS contamination across its distribution area.
—The Arizona Republic, 10 Apr. 2024
Adverb
Seniors on Medicare will pay no more than $35 per month out of pocket, thanks to a provision in the Inflation Reduction Act that went into effect Jan. 1.
—Berkeley Lovelace Jr., NBC News, 14 Mar. 2023
Biden will also propose benefit changes that includes limiting to $2 how much a Medicare recipient must pay out of pocket for certain generic drugs.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 9 Mar. 2023
When the coupon expires, she and other patients will be forced to pay out of pocket.
—ABC News, 23 Feb. 2023
For people in those situations, paying for health care out of pocket or applying to public programs are not viable options.
—Sarah Lapidus, The Arizona Republic, 30 Dec. 2022
When starting a varsity team just depended on procuring a mat, Benson paid thousands out of pocket.
—Aj Traub, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Dec. 2022
Wegovy, for example, costs over $1,300 per month and is taken over the long term, so many patients can’t afford to pay for it out of pocket.
—Elaine Chen and Isabella Cueto, STAT, 29 Dec. 2022
Visitors would need to pay out of pocket, with the Financial Times reporting one couple paid $170 each for a dose.
—Bloomberg, Fortune, 28 Dec. 2022
The costs are usually rolled into the mortgage, meaning borrowers won't have to pay them out of pocket — though this does reduce the loan amount available to them.
—Becca Stanek, The Week, 19 Dec. 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'out-of-pocket.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near out-of-pocket
Cite this Entry
“Out-of-pocket.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/out-of-pocket. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
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