CMS: Health spending growth hit record low in 2013

CMS's Office of the Actuary said U.S. health spending growth hit a 54-year low of 3.6% in 2013, mirroring a pattern of slow growth in the overall economy over five years. The $2.9 trillion in total health spending represented 17.4% of GDP, which was stable compared to the previous year.

The agency's report, published online in Health Affairs, raised questions of whether health spending will grow more quickly as the economy improves and how the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will affect future spending.

The slowdown was offset by faster spending growth for Medicaid and prescription drugs. Medicaid spending growth increased to 6.1% in 2013 from 4% in 2012, affected by higher provider reimbursement rates, a temporary increase in payments to primary care physicians and Medicaid expansion in some states.

Prescription drug spending grew at a rate of 2.5% in 2013, up from 0.5% in 2012, amid price increases for brand name and specialty drugs, higher spending on new drugs and more total prescriptions. Several blockbuster drugs lost patent protection in 2012.

In September, CMS said it expected prescription drug spending to grow by 6.8% in 2014, driven in part by the newly insured and people switching insurance plans under the ACA. CMS also attributed the increase in part to new HCV treatments and spending on specialty drugs.

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