Spending on healthcare has grown faster than the economy over the past few years, which means fewer Americans will be able to afford to pay the rising premiums. Lawmakers are interested in expanding coverage, but it is difficult to find ways to do this without increasing total healthcare and federal costs.
Healthcare spending is expected to cost $2.6 trillion dollars, a rate of $8,300 per person, in 2009. This accounts for approximately 18 percent of the nation’s economy.
Read the CBO testimony addressing the growing uninsured population.
