Upstream Pressure

Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI)

BLS data

What is the current Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI)?

HEALTHCARE INFLATION PREMIUM (MEDICAL CPI MIN
-0.13 pts ↓ Improving
Healthcare costs outpacing overall inflation by a full perce

Healthcare inflation is running 1.04 percentage points above overall CPI in the latest reading. This premium — the gap between medical care CPI and all-items CPI — measures how much faster healthcare costs are rising compared to general prices. A persistent premium means healthcare is steadily consuming a larger share of household budgets. Source: BLS (CUSR0000SAM minus CPIAUCSL).

Healthcare costs outpacing overall inflation by a full percentage point

BLS data. When medical inflation exceeds headline CPI, households face a squeeze that wage growth cannot offset. The premium is positive for the first time since 2020.

Source: Computed (Medical Care CPI - CPI All Items YoY) via official source ↗
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Explore Further

📊 Medical Debt & Healthcare Cost Statistics 2026 → 📖 What Is Consumer Price Index (CPI)? → 📖 What Is Cost Burden? →

How has Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI) changed over time?

CSV Chart Card
Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI) over time
Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI), percentage_points
Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI)
Data: Computed (Medical Care CPI - CPI All Items YoY) Updated Apr 2026

Most affected counties

Counties with the highest housing cost burden scores in the County Distress Index.

1 Miami-Dade County FL 98 2 Passaic County NJ 97.8 3 Los Angeles County CA 97.6 4 Butte County CA 97.4 5 Humboldt County CA 97.2 6 San Diego County CA 97.2 7 Bronx County NY 97.1 8 Brazos County TX 97.1 9 Santa Barbara County CA 97 10 Whitman County WA 97
Explore all 3,144 counties →
Historical data
Monthly · Computed (Medical Care CPI - CPI All Items YoY)
Period Value YoY Change
Mar 2026 -0.13 pts −0.4 pts
Feb 2026 1.04 pts +1.0 pts
Jan 2026 0.59 pts +1.0 pts
Dec 2025 0.27 pts +0.3 pts
Nov 2025 0.18 pts −0.2 pts
Sep 2025 0.27 pts −0.6 pts
Aug 2025 0.54 pts +0.1 pts
Jul 2025 0.77 pts +0.5 pts
Jun 2025 0.07 pts −0.2 pts
May 2025 0.08 pts +0.3 pts
Apr 2025 0.4 pts +1.1 pts
Mar 2025 0.26 pts +1.5 pts

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the healthcare inflation premium?

It measures the gap between medical care CPI inflation and overall CPI inflation. Currently 1.04 percentage points, meaning healthcare costs are rising faster than general prices.

Why does this gap matter?

When healthcare costs consistently outpace overall inflation, they consume an ever-larger share of household budgets. This is a component of the Cost Pressure dimension of the American Distress Index.

Where does this data come from?

Computed from two BLS series: medical care CPI (CUSR0000SAM) minus all-items CPI (CPIAUCSL).

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Why does Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI) matter?

Healthcare Inflation Premium (Medical CPI minus Overall CPI) is one of 91 indicators in the American Distress Index's upstream pressure layer — the signal that predicted the 2008 crisis two years before delinquency data confirmed it.
View methodology →
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