Healthcare Spending Statistics: How Much America Pays to Stay Healthy

Americans know what’s right. Freedom of the press. Equal opportunity for all. Individualism and independence. We are ambitious and idealistic, we are proud, and in our heart of hearts, we believe that helping our fellow man is our moral duty. And yet — the United States is the only wealthy country in the world not to guarantee tax-supported healthcare for all. 

Our country’s healthcare spending tops the charts. We pay our doctors excellent salaries, our hospitals are incredibly well-equipped, and we provide good service to millions. But more than 26 million Americans lacked any form of health insurance in recent years, a figure expected to rise as 10 million people are projected to lose coverage due to Medicaid cuts following the "One Big, Beautiful Bill Act" of 2025.

Their futures are based on a gamble that they won’t face a catastrophic accident or suffer a long-term illness.

Despite all our money and all our skill, it seems we can’t take care of our own. Compared to other wealthy countries, our infant mortality rates are high, our life expectancy rates are low, and we can’t provide basic care to those in need. So if we’re spending all that money and still failing all those people, where is all the cash going?

Let’s find out. 

Key Healthcare Spending Statistics for 2026 - Editor's Choice

• 56% of large US employers state that the interest in GLP-1 drugs is the primary factor driving health care costs up in 2026.
• Per capita healthcare spending in the US is currently projected at $16,570.
• $776 billion will be spent on prescription drugs in the US by 2033.
• Americans aged 65+ amounted to 37% of all healthcare spending in 2025.
• Commercial health care spending in the US is the highest it's been in 13 years.

The US spent $5.6 trillion on healthcare in 2025.

(The Peterson Center on Healthcare)

According to the most recent data, the overall spending by 2033 is now expected to be $8.6 trillion, which continues to outpace what the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services projected it would be in previous decades.

Commercial healthcare spending in the US was expected to increase by 8% to 8.8% in 2025.

(PWC)

This means that the commercial healthcare spending is now at the highest level in the past 13 years, driven primarily by inflationary pressure and the surging demand for weight-loss medications.

In 2025, per capita healthcare spending in the US was $16,570.

(Reuters)

On average, that’s how much it costs to keep an American citizen healthy for one year, and represented an increase from $15,074 in 2024. By 2026, per capita spending growth is expected to slow slightly to 4.7%.

More than 67 million Americans were covered by Medicare in 2025.

(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)

Out of those, more than half (56%) of Part D beneficiaries are also enrolled in Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug plans (MA-PDs) as of 2026.

If you get a heart attack, it will cost an average of $24,331 to get treated in a hospital.

(Sidecar Health)

While the average cost varies by state, the latest data from 2025 shows that the costs have gone significantly up in recent years.

66.5% of all bankruptices in the US were caused by medical bills.

(World Population Review)

It is estimated that more than half a million Americans filed for bankruptcy each year prior to 2025 because they were unable to handle their medical debts. While healthcare-related business bankruptcies fell 21% in 2025, individual medical debt remains a primary driver of household financial distress.

The US spends more on healthcare than any other wealthy nation, and yet it has the lowest life expectancy rate.

(Peter G. Peterson Foundation)

The latest available data confirms that the US also has the second-highest infant mortality rate among the wealthiest nations in the world.

The US spent around 18.0% of its GDP on healthcare in 2025.

(KFF)

What's more troubling is that the continuous health spending growth is now expected to outpace growth in the overall economy, as it is projected to represent 20.3% of the country's GDP by 2033.

Administrative costs accounted for more than 40% of total healthcare spending in the US in recent years.

(American Hospital Association)

In other countries, the numbers range between 1% and 3%. American doctors report a high level of “administrative burden.” Marking clinical data reports and resolving insurance claims not only takes a lot of time and effort for physicians, but it also costs a lot of money. 

In 2026, total prescription drug spending growth is expected to slow to a rate of 5.1% due to Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provisions.

(BioSpace)

Medication is incredibly expensive in America, and a lot of people simply don’t have the funds they need to buy life-saving medicines. The high prices of new and modern drugs are now further increasing the expenses, with the pharmaceutical market expected to grow to $776 billion for prescription drugs alone by 2033.

The spending of Americans aged 65+ amounted to 37% of all healthcare spending in 2025.

(CBRE)

Even though they represent 17% of the country's population, the oldest US citizens are spending more and more on health care.

The massive interest in glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs like Ozempic is the biggest factor for increased healthcare spending in 2026.

(Business Group on Health)

The latest report indicates that health care costs in the US jumped by 8% in 2025, and that some 56% of large employers in the US pointed to GLP-1 drugs as the primary factor for rising health care costs in 2025. By 2026, gross Medicare spending on these drugs is projected to exceed $27.5 billion.

The 2025 "One Big, Beautiful Bill Act" is projected to cause 11.8 million people to lose health coverage by 2034 due to Medicaid eligibility changes.

(AMA)

As federal funding structures shift, the massive reduction in Medicaid rolls is expected to significantly increase the number of uninsured Americans over the next decade.

Hospital care remained the largest sector of US health spending, reaching an estimated $1.8 trillion in 2025.

(Peterson-KFF)

Despite the rise in outpatient services and telehealth, the sheer cost of inpatient procedures and emergency care continues to dominate the American healthcare ledger.

Healthcare Spending in the Future

Healthcare is a complex subject in the US. While politicians argue over how to approach the problems of rising healthcare prices, average Americans are rationing insulin, selling their cars to pay for last year’s unexpected hospital stay, and arguing about pre-existing conditions with their insurance companies. 

The bottom line is this: We need to find a way to take care of our own. Whether it’s through a better government spending plan, advanced technology that can cut down costs, or something else entirely, our people deserve to have their health protected.