U.S. healthcare spending increased 3.9% to reach $3.5 trillion in 2017, according to CMS’s National Health Expenditures 2017 Highlights report. That rate is expected to grow at an average of 5.5% per year between 2018 and 2027.
The 2017 per person expenditure was $10,739 with healthcare spending growth in 2017 similar to average growth from 2008 to 2013. Faster growth occurred during the 2014-15 period that was marked by insurance coverage expansion and high rates of growth in retail prescription drug spending. The overall share of gross domestic product related to healthcare spending was 17.9% in 2017, similar to that in 2016 (18%).
