Almanac – Cost & Quality

2022 Edition — Health Care Costs 101

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs

This quick reference guide provides a look at national health care spending in 2020. The full report will be released later this year.

2021 Edition — Quality of Care: Providers

This set of quality measures focuses on providers, including ambulatory surgery centers, emergency departments, inpatient hospitals, nursing homes, home health care, and hospice.

2021 Edition — Health Care Costs 101

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

Health Care Costs 101: US Spending Growth Outpaces Economy provides a detailed look at national health care spending in 2019, just prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Health Care Costs Accounted for 17.7 Percent of GDP in 2018

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

New CHCF Almanac shows hospital care was the biggest spending category.

Ever-Rising Health Costs Worsen California’s Coronavirus Threat

Kristof Stremikis

Health Care Costs

As the novel coronavirus continues to spread, it is important to remember another significant threat to the health of our people — soaring health costs.

2020 Edition — Quality of Care: Providers

This set of quality measures focuses on providers, including ambulatory surgery centers, emergency departments, inpatient hospitals, nursing homes, home health care, and hospice.

2020 Edition — Health Care Costs 101

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

US health spending reached $3.6 trillion in 2018. National health spending grew 4.6% in 2018, a slightly higher rate than the 4.2% growth in 2017.

2019 Edition — Health Disparities by Race and Ethnicity

California is the most racially diverse state in the country, and addressing health disparities experienced by people of color is critically important. This Almanac report shows that people of color face barriers to accessing health care, often receive suboptimal treatment, and are most likely to experience poor outcomes in the health care system.

Market Consolidation on Trial

October 3, 2019

Kristof Stremikis

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

On the eve of a trial over alleged anticompetitive practices by a California health care system, a new CHCF study traces the correlation between health industry consolidation and prices paid by consumers.

Almanac Shows Slower National Health Spending Growth, But Major Challenges Persist

Kristof Stremikis

Health Care Costs

The newest CHCF Almanac notes that growth in national health spending slowed to 3.9% in 2017, most recent year with available data. It’s the slowest pace since 2013 and lower than the overall growth rate of the US economy.

2015 Edition — Health Care Costs 101

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

With an increase of just 3.6% in 2013, the lowest growth rate in half a century, US spending on health care continued its slow growth, a trend that began in 2009. Health Care Costs 101: Reaching a Spending Plateau? details how much is spent on health care in the US, which services are purchased, and who pays.

2016 Edition — Health Care Costs 101

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

After five years of slow growth, national health spending grew by 5.3% in 2014, up from 2.9% in 2013. The faster growth was due in part to coverage expansion under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Health Care Costs 101: ACA Spurs Modest Growth, released in 2016, reports on data from 2014.

2013 Edition — Quality of Care

Behavioral Health, Maternal Health

The quality of health care in California is improving, yet significant disparities persist in some areas. This Almanac report, Quality of Care: Steps in the Right Direction, provides data on a number of measures, including childbirth, children's health, and management of patients with common chronic conditions.

Quality of Care — Almanac Collection

Behavioral Health, Maternal Health

The Almanac reports in this collection examine the quality of health care in California. Topics include maternity care, behavioral health, chronic conditions, and providers.

2019 Edition — Health Care Costs 101

Katherine Wilson

Health Care Costs, Payment & Financing

National health spending grew by 3.9% in 2017, slower than the 4.8% growth in 2016. This Almanac report, Health Care Costs 101: Spending Keeps Growing, details how much is spent on health care in the US, which services are purchased, and who pays.