Description
Spending for health care in Alaska topped $5 billion in 2005. Just how big is $5 billion? It is, for perspective, one-third the value of North Slope oil exports in 2005—a year of high oil prices. It’s nearly one-sixth the value of everything Alaska’s economy produced last year. In 1991, health-care spending in Alaska was about $1.6 billion. Even after we take population growth into account, spending for health care increased 176% per Alaskan in 15 years. These soaring costs are taking a growing share of family and government budgets, increasing labor costs, and putting businesses at a competitive disadvantage.
Publication Date
4-17-2006
Keywords
health care, competitive disadvantage, Understanding Alaska, oil prices, spending
Recommended Citation
Goldsmith, Scott and Foster, Mark, "Alaska's $5 Billion Health Care Bill - Who's Paying?" (2006). Reports. 379.
https://scholarworks.alaska.edu/uaa_iser_reports/379
Handle
http://hdl.handle.net/11122/12200