CMS Office of the Actuary releases 2017–2026 Projections of National Health Expenditures

The Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Wednesday released the projected national health expenditures for 2017-2026. National health expenditure growth is expected to average 5.5 percent annually over the next decade. Growth in national health spending is projected to be faster than projected growth in gross domestic product (GDP) by 1.0 percentage point over 2017-2026. As a result, the report projects the health share of GDP to rise from 17.9 percent in 2016 to 19.7 percent by 2026. The report also found that by 2026, federal, state, and local governments are projected to finance 47 percent of national health spending, up from 45 percent in 2016. Among the major sectors of health care, spending growth is projected to be fastest for prescription drugs, averaging 6.3 percent for 2017-2026. This is due in part to faster projected drug price growth, particularly by the end of the period, influenced by trends in relatively costlier specialty drugs.