CMS: retail drug spend remains small fraction of total health spend
Increase in total national health expenditure is once again primarily driven by hospital care and physician and clinical services
The latest health spending data from CMS shows the increase in 2021 was largely driven by hospital care and physician and clinical services, not prescription drugs. Retail prescription drugs constituted 11% of personal health expenditure and 9% of total health expenditure — percentages that have changed little over the past decade.
CMS’s annual report, released in December, always lags by one year, making 2021 the most recent year from which health spend data are available. Both personal and national health expenditure are aggregate amounts, with personal expenditure accounting for hospital care, physician and clinical services, other professional services, prescription drugs, nursing homes and medical equipment. National health expenditure includes those categories plus government administration, health insurance, public health activities, research, and structures and equipment. ...