Health Care Spending Grew at Fastest Pace Since Obama's Presidency

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released 2014 health expenditures on Wednesday. This latest data reveals that healthcare spending grew 5.3 percent from 2013, its fastest rate in seven years. This jump is primarily due to increased insurance coverage through Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, as well as a 12.2 percent spike in spending on prescription drugs. The visualizations below show health expenditures in the US and percent of US GDP spent on healthcare.