Giving Compass' Take:

• Jessie Hellmann reports that a study found that rising prices are driving record healthcare spending, not increased use of services. 

• How can funders help to keep down costs? What drives up the price of healthcare goods and services in healthcare? 

• Read about ways for states to cut the cost of healthcare spending. 

Health care spending for individuals who receive employer-sponsored insurance has reached a record high, according to a study.

Average annual spending for people who get their health insurance through work was $5,641 in 2017, up 4.2 percent from $5,416 the previous year, the Health Care Cost Institute (HCCI) found in its analysis. The average includes the amount paid by workers, their employers and insurers.

Spending on health care is increasing because of higher prices, not because people are using more services, according to the study.

The overall use of health care services declined 0.2 percent between 2013 and 2017, while spending on health care increased 16.7 percent.

"For the most part, Americans aren't using more health care services, which means we’re essentially paying more and more for the same amount of health care," said Niall Brennan, president and chief executive of HCCI.

Read the full article about healthcare spending by Jessie Hellmann at The Hill.