Sorry, I didn't make it clear: those are Social Security contributions, not Medicare. But, the cost of money calculations apply to Medicare contributions as well.
My point is that when you include the cost of money, your actual contributions over the past 40 years have multiplied by about 3X, and will continue to grow until you retire.
Yes, I know there is no actual account balance on your behalf. But, when you do a cost/benefit analysis over time, you have to do it like there is a balance of accounts, or the results are meaningless.
For Social Security and Medicare, the government is essentially borrowing money from you now, with the promise to borrow more from someone else to pay you later. Why would you loan money to them for nothing?
(Oh, and I typo'ed a digit: 270K+580K is actually 850K).
If there is no balance then the money does not exist. It’s just a ponzi scheme. This is the reason why they keep saying that Medicare/aid whatever will be insolvent in a few years.
At least with a normal investment you get statement showing how your money is growing or shrinking.