An L.A. Times reporter put tongue-firmly-in-check with this question, and in so doing painted a vivid picture to mark an unfortunate milestone. According to the Milliman Medical Index, health care costs for a family of four now average $20,728 nationally, roughly the equivalent of buying a mid-size sedan.

The catch being that the people tend to buy a car every 5.5 years on average, while health care spending is annual. Put another way, health care bills are keeping you out of that used Maserati every family of four deserves.

Within the context of interest rates at all-time lows, a deep recession and an unsteady economic outlook, health care costs have somehow increased between six and eight percent annually for the past five years. Good health may be priceless, but health care is just plain pricier by the day.