NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Health care stocks are leading the S&P 500 this year despite slower growth in the sector, suggesting gains could be even more impressive if the trend reverses.

Despite a popular perception health care spending continues to rise inexorably, it has actually been on a downward trend since 2002 or 2009, depending upon which health care economist you choose to follow. The recent slowdown stands in contrast to growth that has consistently eclipsed gross domestic product, with few interruptions, since at least the mid-1960s.

Whether the slowdown in health care spending growth will continue, however, is up for debate, with "responsible people on both sides," said Brookings Fellow Henry Aaron.

Though Aaron is in the camp that believes the slowdown will endure, he nonetheless argued that the underlying fundamentals are good for the health care sector, which is why he conceded that he has "a significant fraction" of his savings in health care mutual funds.

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Health Care Stocks Steam Ahead Even as Sector Growth Slips