A recent report from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) shows that per capita health spending slowed in 2021. The growth rate was 2.6% down from 9.9% in 2020, after a ramp-up that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As utilization returns to pre-pandemic levels and price inflation in the health sector abates somewhat, per person health spending is projected to rebound to an annual rate of 4.8% per capita from 2022 to 2031, which is slightly above pre-pandemic growth rates, which averaged to 3.9% from 2014 to 2019.

Prescription drug spending grew 7.7% per capita from 2020 to 2021. Increases in Medicaid prescription drug spending drove overall per capita prescription drug spending growth during the pandemic, largely due to increases in Medicaid enrollment. However, in 2022, slower Medicaid enrollment growth is expected to have slowed growth to 4.7% per capita. Growth in drug spending is projected to slow to 2.8% per capita in 2023, as Medicaid enrolment declines