HOW DOES HEALTH CARE SPENDING IN THE USA COMPARE TO OTHER DEVELOPED COUNTRIES?
Health spending per capita in the US is 24% higher than in the next highest spending countries, and over 90% higher than in many other countries that would be considered to be global economic competitors. And, with over 15% of gross domestic product (GDP) devoted to health, the US is committing a substantially greater share of the economy to the health sector. The mean per capita expenditure in 2003 for 18 other OECD nations (for which data could be collected) was $2958 as opposed to the $6711 per capita in the USA. While the US spent 15.2% of GDP on health care (which millions of citizens cannot access) the average as percent GDP for the other 18 OECD nations was just 9.3% (with a standard deviation of just 1.2% – there is SOMETHING SPECIAL WITH RESPECT TO COSTS AND THE US SYSTEM. The growth in health spending in the US is among the highest for developed countries also. After adjusting for inflation, health spending per capita grew at an average annual rate of 4.4% between 1980 and 20
