Surprising Statistics About U.S. Healthcare

This past week, the U.S. Supreme Court has been hearing arguments about healthcare reform. This has stirred new debate about the state of healthcare in the country. Some people say that access to healthcare and the cost of medical treatment is a problem, while others argue that if someone wants health insurance, they should just go buy some.



Recently, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development ranked the healthcare standards of 34 of the most developed countries. Here's how the U.S. ranked:

 

First in Spending - Annual healthcare spending totals $2.6 trillion, equal to 17.9 percent of U.S. annual gross domestic product, or $8,402 for every man, woman and child.

First in Good Health Self-Assessments - 90 percent of U.S. adults aged 15 and older describe themselves as being in good health versus an OECD average of 69.1 percent.

First in Obesity - More than one-third of American adults are obese, up from 15 percent in 1980.

Second in Prevalence of Diabetes - 10.3 percent of the U.S. population suffers from diabetes, surpassed only by Mexico's 10.8 percent. The OECD average is 6.5 percent.

Third out of nine in Waiting Time for Specialists - Out of nine countries from Europe, North America and the Antipodes, the United States has the third-shortest waiting time for specialist appointments at an average of 20 weeks; Germany and Switzerland had shorter waiting periods.

Fourth in Preventing Death from Stroke - The United States ranks behind Israel, Switzerland and France with 32 stroke-related deaths per 100,000 people.

Seventh in Cancer Incidence - Cancer afflicts more than 300 people per 100,000 in the United States, compared with an OECD average of 261.

Ninth in Preventing Death from Cancer - At 185 deaths per 100,000, the United States is behind Australia but well above an OECD average of 208.

10th in Number of Practicing Nurses - 10.8 per 1,000 population versus an OECD average of 8.4 percent.

11th of 11 in Unmet Need for Care Due to Cost - Compared with 10 European countries and Canada, the United States ranks last in its ability to provide affordable care: Thirty-nine percent of people with below-average income and 20 percent of people with above-average income reported forgoing a doctor's visit or prescription because of the cost.

25th in Preventing Death from Heart Disease - At 129 deaths per 100,000 people, the U.S. heart disease mortality rate is worse than those in Canada and Austria but is still below an OECD average of 117.

27th in Life Expectancy - Americans can expect to live 78.2 years on average, below the OECD average and just behind Slovenia and Chile.

29th in Number of Practicing Doctors - The United States has 2.4 practicing doctors per 1,000 population, placing it below an OECD average of 3.1 and behind Canada and Slovenia.

29th in Doctor Consultations - At 3.9 doctor visits per capita, the United States leads only Ireland, Mexico, Sweden and Chile versus an OECD average 6.5 percent.

30th in Hospital Beds - 3.1 per 1,000 population, behind Portugal, Britain and Spain.

30th in Medical Graduates - 6.5 per 100,000 population, ahead of only France, Japan and Israel. The OECD average is

Source: Reuters



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