Summary: Where do the dollars go? This collection of facts and figures from Jason Millman, who just left The Washington Post for Politico, shows that hospital care eats up 32 percent of the total annual health care spend in the U.S., according to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
“The United States spent $2.9 trillion on health care in 2013, or about $9,255 per person, according to a new detailed accounting of the nation’s health care dollars. The 2013 totals represent just 3.6 percent growth in national health spending from 2012 — the lowest annual growth rate since 1960, according to a federal report published in the policy journal Health Affairs,” Millman wrote.
“It also marks the fifth straight year of low health spending growth, and it shows a slowdown from the 4.1 percent growth rate in 2012. And for the fifth straight year, health care spending as a share of the economy held steady at 17.4 percent.
“The annual spending report from the CMS Office of the Actuary provides the most comprehensive look at where the nation’s health care dollars go. Most of the $2.9 trillion is spent on hospital care ($936.9 billion), physicians and clinical services ($586.7 billion), and prescription drugs ($271.1 billion).” Jason Millman, Here’s exactly how the United States spends $2.9 trillion on health care,” The Washington Post.
