Health Care Spending in the US Health, Medicine Coursework

Health Care Spending in the US
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Health Care Spending in the US
Healthcare spending in the United States is higher than in other countries globally (Blazheski & Karp, 2018). The US spent $3.4 billion in 2016 and $3.6 trillion in 2018, a 4.2 percent increase from the 2017 expenses (Shrank, Rogstad & Parekh, 2019). The implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2014 led to slower growth and stability of healthcare expenditure from 2016 to 2018. Medical expenses account for about 18% of US gross domestic product (GDP) annually (Blazheski & Karp, 2018). As much as there is a tremendous healthcare expenditure in the US, not all Americans spend the same amounts. The high spending makes healthcare insurance cost very high, which explains why 45.7 million American citizens do not have medical insurance covers. The primary healthcare areas with high spending include hospital care, dental services, prescription medications, and nursing care (Blazheski & Karp, 2018). Modern diagnostic technologies are also quite expensive, making it al...