December 2015 Health Sector Economic Indicators Briefs

Health spending in October 2015 was up 5.5% compared to October 2014, continuing the slowdown from the peak of 6.8% growth in February 2015. Health care prices in October 2015 were 1.2% higher than in October 2014, up from 1.0% in September, a rate that tied the multi-decade low hit in August 2013. The health sector added 23,800 jobs in November, a solid increase but much lower than the unusually large gains seen in each of the past 7 months.