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The Health Care Crisis Ain’t What It Used to Be: Personal Spending on Non-Health Goods and Services Has Increased by One-Third Since 1995
Health Policy Prescription
By: John R. Graham
8.13.2009
“The cost of our health care has weighed down the economy and the conscience of our nation long enough,” claims President Obama.1 This belief, unfortunately, does not jibe with the facts.
In 1959, before massive government involvement in taxing, financing, and controlling Americans’ access to medical services, spending on health goods and services accounted for only 6 percent of personal consumption spending. By 2008, it had increased to 19 percent. These calculations include programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, by which the federal and state governments transfer money between households to finance personal consumption of medical goods and services.2
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