National health spending growth continues to slow down

The federal government reported this week that for the first time in decades, national health spending grew at a slower rate in 2012 than the overall economy (Source: “Another Modest Rise for Health Costs,” New York Times, Jan. 7, 2014).

According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report, national health increased by 3.7 percent in 2012 to $2.8 trillion, or about $8,900 per person. As a share of the economy, health spending declined slightly, to 17.2 percent in 2012, from 17.3 percent in the prior year.

The report’s authors said that the Affordable Care Act had only “a minimal impact on overall national health spending growth through 2012” and had not yet significantly reined in or accelerated its growth.

“The relatively low rates of growth that we’ve seen over the last four years are consistent with the historical trends that we’ve seen when we look at health spending and gross domestic product,” said Aaron C. Catlin, an economist and co-author of the report. “It’s consistent with what we’ve seen in post-recessionary periods in the past.”