Here are some old but interesting data exhibits taken from Deloitte’s 2006 report “The Catalyst for Health Care Reform” (though original source of the analysis appears to the Bureau of Economic Analysis). Since 1950, spending per $1000 of Americans’ discretionary income has decreased for food and clothing, remained constant for housing prices, and increased considerably for healthcare.
- Trends in healthcare spending undo productivity gains elsewhere
I’m somewhat curious about a couple things:
- How much longer can this continue?
The trend in increased healthcare spending is alarming, especially as productivity gains start to level off in other sectors and certain areas of spending not shown (e.g., technology and telecom connectivity) become increasingly important. Where will new wealth come from to support healthcare costs? - Is the drop in food prices actually contributing to the increase in healthcare spending? (And if so, how much is it driving?)
As foreshadowed in a recent post, patients’ behavioral decisions which lead to health issues like diabetes squeeze hundreds of billions of dollars out of our healthcare system each year. It’s great that the fast food revolution provides cheap and tasty food very quickly. But how much of the savings leak out when it comes time to repair the damage it wracks on our cardiovascular or endocrine systems?
This analysis is further proof of just how badly healthcare costs are spiraling out of control in the US and how quickly we’ll need to act to counteract them.
Finally, to those who watched football today: what a day! Some good games and a lot of playoff implications. As far as who I want in the Big Game, I’m going to go with my heart and say: “Anyone but the Pats!” And of course, my Seahawks will have to wait until next season (when hopefully the offensive line will finally gel and Justin Forsett becomes our featured back).
