A recent report from S&P Indices showed that healthcare costs increased 5.73 percent over the 12-month period from August 2010 to August 2011.

The S&P Healthcare Economic Commercial Index found that commercial health insurance increased 7.89 percent during the time period, which was the fourth month in a row that the figure rose. Costs for medicare claims grew at a slower pace, and only rose by an annual rate of 2.16 percent. This is a stark contrast from two years ago when the figure witnessed an increase of 8.02 percent.

"As the summer of 2011 ended, we continued to observe the recent trend of a deceleration in the annual growth rates of Medicare costs and a sustained acceleration in the annual rates of commercial healthcare costs," says David Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Indices.

Consumers may want to examine affordable health insurance plans in order to lock in a rate. This could be important if the industry needs to increase costs due to its own rising expenses.