Insurance update: Spending on privately insured grows, ACA questions loom

A new report from the Health Care Cost Institute found spending on the privately insured increased by 2.6% in 2014 but jumped to a 4.6% growth in 2015.

The key driver for the increase was prescription drug spending. For example, $649 per capita went toward brand prescriptions in 2015, an 11.4% jump from 2014.

While private insurers are spending more on health care, patients are wondering about the future of their coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Using data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this interactive map from the Century Foundation shows how many people are enrolled—and could lose health care coverage without the ACA—by zip code.

What’s next for the ACA? Bloomberg gives a detailed look at the difficulties of repealing and replacing the ACA while Politico examines the challenges of privatizing Medicare.