Chart 1.2: Annual Percent Change in Total National Health Expenditures (NHE), 1980-2022
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Office of the Actuary. Data released December 2023.
Notes:
(1) CMS completed a benchmark revision in 2019, introducing changes in methods, definitions and source data that are retroactively applied to the entire time series. For more information on this revision, see https://www.cms.gov/files/document/summary-benchmark-changes-2019.pdf
(2) National Health Expenditure (NHE) are expressed in the current year's dollar, 2022.
(3) In 2021, U.S. health care spending grew at a slower pace than in the previous year, totaling $4.3 trillion. This slowdown was primarily due to a decrease in federal government spending on health care, which had increased significantly in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While there was greater use of health care services and an uptick in insurance coverage in 2021, these factors could not fully offset the reduction in federal expenditures. The percentages also change year over year, with most current percentages reflected in the chart. For more archived information on this decline, see https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/press-releases/national-health-spending-grew-slightly-2021