This data show the United States has the world's most expensive health care budget, both in terms of % of GDP, and Per Capita. Simultaneously, the United States has some of the lowest ratings for access to health care, and some of the highest rates of disease and death.
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Health expenditure
OECD
OECD
For all those billions spent, we rank 22nd in the world for number of doctor visits-- the Japanese get more than 3 times as many doctor visits as Americans get, for a fraction of the price.
Doctors consultations per capita
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OECD
We rank 22nd for number of physicians per thousand people:
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OECD
10th for nurses per thousand:
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OECD
25th for hospital beds per thousand:
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OECD
23rd for acute-care beds:
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OECD
At the same time, we're among the LEAST HEALTHY nations in the world in many ways. We rank 8th in the world for cervical cancer survival:
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OECD
We are the #1 most obese country in the world:
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OECD
We rank 22nd for prevention of asthma-related deaths:
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OECD
We're way down the list for lifespan:
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OECD
Source:
OECD
23rd for prevention of deaths from heart disease and stroke:
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OECD
Source:
OECD
We're behind Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Australia, and Norway for prevention of deaths from certain forms of cancer:
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OECD
Infant mortality
27th for infant survival, nearly 3 times lower than Japan:
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OECD
16th in the world for kids' healthy teeth:
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OECD
22nd for prevention of deaths from asthma:
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OECD
Where's All The Money Going?
For all the money we spend, we're not healthier for it. Something is wrong with this picture.
Somehow, those other countries' government-run systems deliver more access to more health care to more people for a whole lot less money than the U.S. These stats sure make it appear that our for-profit, competitive system is anything BUT efficient. Where's all the money going? A 2003 Harvard study concluded that administrative costs accounted for 31 percent of health care expenditures in the United States, versus 16 percent in Canada. Why? Anyone who has ever dealt with insurance company red-tape knows why. American doctors have to deal with multiple insurers, each with their own forms and procedures and regulations. Doctors have to pay full-timer staffers just to handle the bureaucracy. Not so, in other countries:
Costs of Health Care Administration in the United States and Canada
Sick For Profit
CEO salaries and bonuses? CEO Stephen Hemsley of United Health Care earns over 100 thousand $dollars PER HOUR:
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Sick For Profit
CIGNAs Edward Hanway spends his holidays in a $13 million beach house in New Jersey. CIGNA executives enjoy gold-plated flatware and gold-trimmed china on private jets, while regular Americans are routinely denied coverage when they need it most.
Clearly, our poor access to health care does not justify the exorbitant cost of our health coverage.
