Healthcare Cost Growth Steamrolls CPI

Healthcare costs began to accelerate in May 2009 and peaked in May 2010, before decelerating through the first half of 2011. An acceleration trend began again in October, 2011 but tapered slightly in June.    

In 2011 S&P reported that the average per capita cost of healthcare services covered by Medicare programs and commercial insurance grew by 5.28 %, including +7.11% for commercial insurance plans and +2.51% for Medicare.

Maitland says much of the deceleration in healthcare cost growth over the past two years was "a little lag effect on the recession of two years ago. In 2011 prices and utilization started increasing. The economy was getting better and people were using more healthcare."