America hits the brakes on health care spending [View all]

[xchrom]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_HEALTH_CARE_SPENDING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-01-09-17-46-33

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Is health-care relief finally in sight?

Health spending stabilized as a share of the nation's economy in 2010 after two back-to-back years of historically low growth, the government reported Monday.

Experts debated whether it's a fleeting consequence of the sluggish economy, or a real sign that cost controls by private employers and government at all levels are starting to work.

The answers will be vital for Medicare's sustainability, as well as for workplace coverage.

U.S. health care spending grew by 3.9 percent in 2010, reaching $2.6 trillion, according to the report by the Health and Human Services department.

That's an average of $8,402 per person - far more than any other economically advanced country.



*** i remain adamantly opposed to the HCR act -- i want to see health care for americans not insurance reform.