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Summary of “Health Care Costs: What’s the Problem?”

Figure 1

National health care spending (in billions of dollars), 2000-2020.
Figure 1. National health care spending (in billions of dollars), 2000-2020. Note: Investments include research and development spending of drug companies and other manufacturers and providers of medical equipment and structures. Other Personal Health Care includes other professional and dental services, home health care, medical equipment and products, nursing care facilities and continuing care retirement communities, and other health, residential, and personal care.
Sources: AAMC analysis of Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. National Health Expenditure Data. https://www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-Systems/Statistics-Trends-and-Reports/NationalHeal…. Published Dec. 1, 2021. Accessed Feb. 24, 2022.

Overview

The figure shows stacked national health care spending by type of expenditure every two years from 2000-2020. It shows that U.S. health care spending has increased every two years since 2000. From bottom to top of stacked bar, the types of expenditures are Hospital Care; Physician and Clinical Services; Prescription Drugs; Other Personal Health Care; Government Administration, Public Health Activities, and Net Cost of Health Insurance; and Investments. Hospital Care; Physician and Clinical Services; Other Personal Health Care; and Government Administration, Public Health Activities, and Net Cost of Health Insurance were the types of expenditures that accounted for the largest shares of total spending. Prescription Drugs and Investments made up the smallest shares of total spending throughout the years.

Values

Year Spending ($ billions)
2000 $1,366
2002 $1,631
2004 $1,894
2006 $2,164
2008 $2,402
2010 $2,589
2012 $2,783
2014 $3,001
2016 $3,306
2018 $3,605
2020 $4,124

Presentation

The stacked bar chart includes years, total national health care spending, and the distribution of types of expenditures. Years are represented at the base of each bar on the x-axis, listed horizontally in chronological order. The national health care spending total is listed at the top of each bar. Within each vertical bar are six types of expenditures stacked and summing to the national total for each year. Types of expenditures are represented by color blocks in each column designated as: Hospital care (dark blue), Physician and Clinical Service (gold), Prescription Drugs (light blue), Other Personal Health Care (dark blue with yellow dots), Government Administration, Public Health Activities, and Net Cost of Health Insurance (gold with medium-sized blue dots), Investments (gray).