A recently-conducted study from New York University researchers throws light on the up surging cost in the $2.8 trillion U.S. health care system, hinting where the money goes.

Research scientists Claudia Solis-Roman and Stephanie Ma along with NYU Wagner Dean and Professor Sherry Glied analyzed in their Health Affairs piece that amount paid to physicians' offices, outpatient care centers and hospitals shot up by a staggering $580 billion between 1997 and 2012.

Buying medical services coupled with the increased fees of highly skilled professionals was the reason behind the boost in health spending in the time period the researchers examined, according to the study dubbed, "Where the Money Goes: The Evolving Expenses Of The US Health Care System."

The majority of the increase in spending - about one-third - was utilized to buy additional services and materials. The second largest portion of the increase was used to pay raised salaries to whole slew of nurses and physicians.

The authors noted although the rise in health expenditures are tracked regularly, very little is known about these costs - which constitute the earnings of health care industries - and are later allocated, and understanding how this allocation has evolved over time is crucial in creating healthcare policies, according to a post on New York University official website.

Healthcare employment shot up by 1.7 million people from 1997 to 2012, and under half of all 2012 earnings were used on compensations for skilled as well as non-skilled employees of the region, the study discovered, using an array of Bureau of Labor Statistics and Census Bureau sources.

The authors explained that changes in the health care sector - encompassing the advancement of new delivery systems and the establishment of new technologies - are expected to change where the money in the sector goes and who receives how much of it in the future.

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Tags Nyu, New York University, Research, Health, Physicians