These data are drawn from "The unfinished business of health reform",
a report by By Josh Biven [3] of The Economic Policy Institute.
To read the Report please go to
https://www.epi.org/publication/health-care-report/ [4]
U.S. health spending is an outlier among advanced countries—and is rising faster than spending in those countriesHealth spending as a share of GDP, by country, 2017, and annual growth in health spending, by country, earliest data year through 2007 and 2017
| Annual percentage-point change | Annual percent change | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending as % of GDP, 2017 | Earliest year–2007 | Earliest year–2017 | Earliest year–2007 | Earliest year–2017 | |
| United States | 17.2% | 0.23 | 0.23 | 2.4% | 2.2% |
| Switzerland | 12.3% | 0.14 | 0.16 | 2.0% | 2.0% |
| Japan | 10.7% | 0.10 | 0.14 | 1.6% | 1.9% |
| Norway | 10.4% | 0.11 | 0.14 | 1.9% | 2.1% |
| France | 11.5% | 0.14 | 0.13 | 1.9% | 1.7% |
| Belgium | 10.0% | 0.14 | 0.13 | 2.3% | 2.1% |
| United Kingdom | 9.7% | 0.09 | 0.12 | 1.7% | 1.9% |
| Spain | 8.8% | 0.13 | 0.12 | 2.5% | 2.2% |
| Germany | 11.3% | 0.12 | 0.12 | 1.5% | 1.5% |
| Austria | 10.3% | 0.13 | 0.12 | 1.8% | 1.6% |
| Sweden | 10.9% | 0.07 | 0.12 | 1.0% | 1.5% |
| Korea | 7.6% | 0.08 | 0.11 | 2.0% | 2.3% |
| Netherlands | 10.1% | 0.10 | 0.10 | 1.4% | 1.3% |
| Australia | 9.1% | 0.10 | 0.10 | 1.6% | 1.5% |
| Finland | 9.2% | 0.08 | 0.09 | 1.2% | 1.3% |
| Canada | 10.4% | 0.08 | 0.09 | 1.0% | 1.1% |
| New Zealand | 9.0% | 0.09 | 0.08 | 1.3% | 1.2% |
| Iceland | 8.5% | 0.11 | 0.08 | 1.7% | 1.3% |
| Italy | 8.9% | 0.08 | 0.08 | 1.1% | 1.0% |
| Israel | 7.3% | 0.08 | 0.07 | 1.4% | 1.2% |
| Denmark | 10.2% | 0.05 | 0.06 | 0.5% | 0.6% |
| Ireland | 7.1% | 0.08 | 0.05 | 1.3% | 0.8% |
| Non-U.S. average | 9.7% | 0.10 | 0.10 | 1.6% | 1.5% |
| Non-U.S. maximum | 7.1% | 0.05 | 0.05 | 0.5% | 0.6% |
| Non-U.S. minimum | 12.3% | 0.14 | 0.16 | 2.5% | 2.3% |
Notes: Data are available beginning in different years for different countries. First year of data availability ranges from 1970 (for Austria, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States) to 1971 (Australia, Denmark), 1972 (Netherlands), 1975 (Israel), and 1988 (Italy).
Source: Author’s analysis of data from OECD 2018a
Examining data on utilization and prices separately shows clearly that it is high prices that drive the U.S. position as an outlier in health care spending. Figure K shows the utilization of physicians and hospitals in the United States compared with the median, maximum, and minimum utilization of physicians and hospitals among its OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) peers. The United States is well below typical utilization of physicians and hospitals among OECD countries.