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Americans spend the most on heart conditions and mental disorders, according to a new study published in Health Affairs.
The study reviewed 32 conditions from 13 diagnostic categories. Personal health spending for mental disorders such as anxiety and depression accounted for $142.2 billion in 2005 – 9 percent of all personal health spending.
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Heart conditions accounted for $123 billion in personal health spending – 8 percent of the total. The study reviewed spending from 1996 to 2005.
Health spending increased about 7 percent annually – about 5 percent higher than inflation. The study says that “changes in prevalence, treatment patterns, and costs per treatment were responsible for about 4 percentage points of the average annual growth rate in personal health spending,” according to a press release.
“By offering an estimate of health expenditures by medical condition, this research provides a starting point for analyzing how to achieve sustainable expenditure growth without compromising value,” stated Dr. Charles Roehrig, a vice president at the Altarum Institute in Michigan, who lead the study.
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