Weight Loss & Diet Plans

Americans Living Longer but Obesity Rising

How Much We Pay for Health Care

• Americans visited a health care provider 1.3 billion times in 2009. That same year, $2.5 trillion dollars was spent on health care. That works out to average of $8,000 per person. Nearly a third of the money was spent on hospitals.
• Prescription drug costs went up more than 5% between 2008 and 2009 for a total of $249.9 billion, more than double what we spent in 2000.
• Private health insurance covered a third of personal health care expenses in 2009. Consumers covered 14% out of pocket. The rest was paid for by Medicare, Medicaid, and others. The Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) cost less than 1% of the total of all health care costs. Along with Medicaid, CHIP insures 54% of children, up from 28% in 2000.
• Employees getting health insurance from their employer decreased, from 67% to 57%, between 2000 and 2010. Eight percent of children and 22% of adults had no insurance of any kind in 2010.
• Eleven percent to 17% of American adults do not receive timely care, necessary medications, or dental care due to cost.