By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    benefits of using protein powder to build muscles
    Protein Powder for Muscle Mass: Everything You Need to Know
    December 12, 2021
    changes brought on by blockchain in healthcare
    Technology In The Healthcare Industry
    March 28, 2022
    What Does Core Body Temperature Say About Health?
    August 17, 2022
    Latest News
    Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
    May 16, 2025
    Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
    May 16, 2025
    Choosing the Right Supplement Manufacturer for Your Brand
    May 1, 2025
    Engineering Temporary Hospitals for Extreme Weather
    April 24, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    FDA Approves Diabetes Pill
    May 2, 2011
    Patient Gets Drunk on Hand Sanitizer
    June 20, 2011
    Cultivating Health Improvement
    July 20, 2011
    Latest News
    Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
    May 18, 2025
    The Critical Role of Healthcare in Personal Injury Recovery: A Comprehensive Guide for Victims
    May 14, 2025
    The Backbone of Successful Trials: Clinical Data Management
    April 28, 2025
    Advancing Your Healthcare Career through Education and Specialization
    April 16, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: United States Third Lowest Spender on Health Care in 11 Developed Countries
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > United States Third Lowest Spender on Health Care in 11 Developed Countries
BusinessFinanceGlobal HealthcarePolicy & LawPublic Health

United States Third Lowest Spender on Health Care in 11 Developed Countries

John Graham
Last updated: December 10, 2013 9:00 am
John Graham
Share
5 Min Read
united states healthcare spending
SHARE

united states healthcare spendingDevon Herrick has already addressed some of the shortcomings of the Commonwealth Fund’s latest survey of eleven developed countries, which questions thousa

united states healthcare spendingDevon Herrick has already addressed some of the shortcomings of the Commonwealth Fund’s latest survey of eleven developed countries, which questions thousands of residents about their health costs and access to health care. The report is inevitably spun with headlines such as: “We pay more, wait longer than other countries“.

In the United States, health spending accounted for almost 18 percent of GDP in 2011. The Netherlands comes next, at just under 12 percent. In dollar figures, the U.S. spent $8,508 per capita, versus only $5,669 in Norway, the runner-up. This certainly invites us to question whether we are getting our money’s worth. Free-market reforms, as described in Priceless, are expected to reduce costs.

However, it’s not clear that relatively high U.S. health spending is a burden on the nation. Table A, which uses data from the survey, shows that when we subtract U.S. health spending from our Gross Domestic Product (GDP), we still had $39, 560 per capita to spend on everything else we value. Only two countries, Norway and Switzerland, beat the U.S. on this measure. In the United Kingdom for example, GDP per capita after health spending was only $32,818 in 2011 (adjusted for the cost of living). So, even though American health care is significantly more expensive than British health care, the average American enjoyed $6,742 more GDP after health spending than his British peer.

More Read

Health Reform Calendar 2012
On “Empowering Patients in the Age of Genomic Medicine”
Paul Krugman: Stop Being an Embarrassment to the Profession
Learning from Children
What Steps Do You Take to Enroll in Florida Health Insurance?

Table A

CountryHealth
Spending/Capita (2011)
Share
of GDP/Capita
GDP/Capita
(2011)
GDP/Cap less Health
Spending/Capita (2011)
 Norway $5,669 9% $60,957 $55,288
 Switzerland $5,643 11% $51,300 $45,657
 United States $8,508 18% $48,068 $39,560
 Australia $3,800 9% $42,697 $38,897
 Netherlands $5,099 12% $42,849 $37,750
 Sweden $3,925 10% $41,316 $37,391
 Canada $4,522 11% $40,375 $35,853
 Germany $4,495 11% $39,779 $35,284
 United Kingdom $3,405 9% $36,223 $32,818
 France $4,118 12% $35,500 $31,382
 New Zealand $3,182 10% $30,893 $27,711

Source: Schoen, C., et al., “Access, Affordabiliy, and Insurance Complexity Are Often Worse in the United States Compared to Ten Other Countries”, Health Affairs (November 2013).

Indeed, there is good evidence that high GDP per capita is a cause of high health spending. David Cutler (occasionally criticized in this blog for his support of ObamaCare) and Dan Ly have explained that physicians’ incomes are a major factor driving up U.S. health spending. The average U.S. specialist earned an income of $230,000 (2010) versus $129,000in twelve other developed countries.(It is unclear whether Cutler is reporting 2010 earnings in 2010 dollars or 2004 constant dollars.)

That is a dramatic difference, but it has little to do with health care per se. Rather, it is a specific case of the general distribution of labor income within a country. Overall, high-income earners in other developed countries earn significantly less than high-income earners in the U.S. Cutler and Ly define “high earners” as those in the 95th to 99th percentile of the earnings distribution. He shows that U.S. specialists earn 37 percent more than the average of these U.S. high earners. However, their international peers earn 45 percent more than their high-earning, non-physician, peers.

When an American physician laments the state of medicine, and encourages her child to become a computer scientist or investment banker instead, this is what she is talking about. So, it is highly unlikely that we could reduce U.S. physicians’ incomes, and maintain an adequate supply of them, without destroying the opportunity for Americans (and immigrants) to earn high incomes in lots of different fields.

Reducing the cost of U.S. health care is a worthy goal, but it needs to be achieved by reducing the role of government at home, not importing a different model of government intervention from abroad.

(US healthcare spending / shutterstock)

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Do You Grind Your Teeth at Night? Here’s How Night Guards and TMJ Treatments Can Help
Do You Grind Your Teeth at Night? Here’s How Night Guards and TMJ Treatments Can Help
Dental health
May 21, 2025
The Secret To A Confident Smile: Top Tips For Better Teeth
The Secret To A Confident Smile: Top Tips For Better Teeth
Dental health
May 21, 2025
Clinical Expertise
Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
Health care
May 18, 2025
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Health
May 15, 2025

You Might also Like

clinical trials
Business

Overcoming Clinical Trial Marketing Challenges: Patient Recruitment and Retention

September 3, 2014

FDA’s Farm Animal Antibiotics Ban Ignored Since 1977, Courts Say

March 29, 2012
ACOs and HMOs
BusinessHealth ReformPolicy & Law

Are ACOs the New HMOs?

June 15, 2014
Collaborative Story Telling
Business

Collaborative Story-Telling

December 7, 2013
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?