Politico January 14, 2026
The 7.2 percent increase comes as Americans continue to seek out medical care at high levels.
The U.S. spent $5.3 trillion on health care in 2024, an increase of 7.2 percent from the prior year, as Americans’ use of medical services like hospital care and prescription drugs continued to grow, according to a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report published Wednesday in the journal Health Affairs.
The uptick follows a similar increase of 7.4 percent in 2023. National health spending grew 4.1 percent in 2021 and 4.8 percent in 2022.
Why it matters: The two-year trend of more than 7 percent spending growth comes as more Americans are covered by health insurance and have sought out care at...
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