This Is How Much Texas Spends On Your Health

By Hristina Byrnes, 24/7 Wall St. Dallas

2021-06-29

The U.S. healthcare system operates differently from many others in the world, characterized by high costs for the individual. In fact, it is because of the higher prices of medications, treatments, and hospital procedures that the U.S. spends more on health care per capita than any other developed country in the world, a 2019 Johns Hopkins report found.

Though expensive, the health care cost is to a large extent covered by the government. In 2019, 29.0% of all health-related spending in the U.S. was paid for by the federal government. A slightly lower share, 28.4%, was paid for by households. State and local governments covered 16.1% of the total cost.

State governments spent $885 billion on health care, or $2,696 per person, in 2018, the latest year for which state and local data is available. Due to different budget priorities and needs, local government health care spending varies considerably by state. Per-capita health care spending ranges from less than $1,100 to more than $3,600.

Texas spent $1,509 per capita on its residents’ health in 2018, the 10th lowest amount of money of all states.

Texas’s health expenditure budget in 2018 totaled $43.8 billion. The state’s health budget covers partial Medicaid coverage, state-run hospitals and university medical schools, and other health expenses and programs addressing needs such as community wellness, substance abuse, health inspection, and pollution control.

In 2018, states allocated between 17% and 39% of their total budgets to health care costs. Texas spent 29.0%, the 22nd highest health spending as a share of all state spending.

In every state, the largest portion of overall health care spending is allocated to public welfare programs. Such programs include Medicare and Medicaid, two government-funded health insurance programs that offer coverage to the elderly, the disabled, and people with low incomes.

Texas allocated in 2018 76.2% of its health budget to public welfare, the eighth lowest share, or $1,150 per capita. States across the country allocate an average of 66.0% of their total health spending, or $1,778 per person, to public welfare programs.

People living with disabilities and those 65 and older are the ones who most commonly need health care and receive state Medicaid spending. Texas’s 65 and over adults comprise 12.9% of the state’s population, the third lowest share and compared to 16.5% across the U.S. as a whole. About 11.5% of Texas’s population have a disability, the 10th lowest share in the country and compared to 12.7% nationwide.

To identify how much each state spends on your health, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the detailed health care expenditures by state governments provided by the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2018 Annual Survey of State and Local Finances. This is how much the government of every state spends per resident. This is how much the government of every state spends per resident.

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This story was originally published by 24/7 Wall St., a news organization that produces real-time business commentary and data-driven reporting for state and local markets across the country.