Americans Spending Billions Out-Of-Pocket On Alternative Medicine

Washington, D.C. (AHN) – A new report from the U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) finds Americans are spending $33.9 billion in out-of-pocket expenses for non-traditional remedies. In its annual report, NCAAM found 38% of American adults are paying for “visits to complementary and alternative medicine practitioners and purchases of products, classes, and materials.”

According to NCCAM and a survey from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), Americans are using alternative medicine “to treat a variety of diseases and conditions.” Billions were spent on products like fish oil, glucosamine and Echinacea and Americans paid for 354.2 million visits to practitioners like acupuncturists and massage therapists.

“With so many Americans using and spending money on CAM therapies, it is extremely important to know whether the products and practices they use are safe and effective,” NCCAM Director Dr. Josephine Briggs explained. “This underscores the importance of conducting rigorous research and providing evidence-based information on CAM so that health care providers and the public can make well-informed decisions.”

“These data indicate that the U.S. public makes millions of visits to CAM providers each year and spends billions of dollars for these services, as well as for self-care forms of CAM,” acting director of NCCAM’s Division of Extramural Research and study lead author Dr. Richard Nahin added. “While these expenditures represent just a small fraction of total health care spending in the United States, they constitute a substantial part of out-of-pocket health care costs.

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