Thursday, July 30, 2015

COTW: It Just Keeps Getting Mo' Spensive

The private market kluge that is the Affordable Health Care Act was never destined to bring down the price of healthcare in the US.  Because it required insurers to sell insurance to those with prior conditions, it was guaranteed to increase health care premiums. These charts include data up to 2012, but the trends have continued unabated. The White House now has to brag about a slower rate of increase!  The first chart is the Milliman Medical Index that shows the annual cost of health for a family of four:

source: Forbes

The largest component of those expenditures is of course health care insurance premiums:


These increases are being paid mostly by the worker in the form of payroll deductions while earnings are barely keeping track with inflation.