A limit on total health care spending for a given unit of population, taking into account all sources of funds. In health care reform discussions and proposals, it usually means that caps will be placed on (1) employers’ expenditures, based on payroll, (2) individuals’ expenditures for insurance, based on income, (3) institutional budgets’ “core spending,” and (4) personal out-of-pocket expenditures. Problem areas include how the information on total spending data is obtained or how the “cap” is enforced.