A tremendous amount of research, analysis, and commentary has been devoted to explaining why health care costs continue to rise in California. This resource brings together the most relevant and important data points that best tell the story of California’s health care affordability crisis, including its causes, impact on Californians, and potential solutions . We recommend that you refer to the source report for each section for more information.
The following sections cover the following topics:
- problem. This section discusses how health care spending in California is increasing at an unreasonable rate. There is nothing inherently wrong with higher or increased health care costs if the spending provides Californians with more or better health care. But it’s clear that spending too much in California will accomplish neither. Experts call this “overspending” and say it can be reduced without compromising access or quality of care.
- Sources of overspending. Independent researchers estimate that 20% to 25% of California’s health spending is excess spending. That equates to approximately $81 billion to $101 billion annually, according to the latest estimates of state spending. This section lists the biggest drivers of overspending and provides examples.
- Impact on Californians. California families pay for all of their health care costs through health insurance premiums and deductibles, unpaid wages, and taxes. This section explores the various ways that health care is becoming unaffordable for too many people, and that Black and Latino/x Californians and low-income Californians are disproportionately affected. Let’s focus on some of the indicators.
- Possible solution. Policy and regulatory options available to the California Affordable Care Agency are highlighted.
