Health care spending continues to rise, even though President Donald Trump’s tax plan does not include any major cuts to Medicare or Medicaid.
According to a report released Wednesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation, health care spending grew at a slower pace than expected last year.
The report, titled “U.S. Health Care Spending in 2020: Forecast vs. Actual,” found that the average annual growth in spending per person is 2.3 percent, up from an annual rate of 1.7 percent.
The increase was more than offset by a slight decrease in the rate of growth in Medicaid spending.
The report also found that health care costs in 2020 are expected to increase $10.3 trillion compared to 2019, an increase of 4.5 percent over 2019.
The average annual increase in Medicare spending per beneficiary is 2 percent, while Medicaid spending per recipient is 1.5%, the report said.
Overall, the average increase in spending is expected to be 5.4 percent, according to the report.
“While it is disappointing that spending growth is slow, the economy is stronger and it is likely that health spending will continue to grow over the next several years,” said John McDonough, president and CEO of the Kaiser Foundation.
“As health care becomes more of a burden, it will require policymakers to be vigilant to ensure that the programs that benefit the most Americans are also designed to provide a quality, affordable health care system for all Americans.”
The Trump administration has released its budget blueprint, which includes an additional $7.6 trillion in cuts to the federal government’s budget.
Trump is proposing a $1.5 trillion tax cut that will cut taxes on the wealthiest Americans.
That plan also includes eliminating a $400 billion “death tax” that would have been phased out in 2019.