Wealthy nations often allocate significant portions of their economies to healthcare, but the scale of spending can vary dramatically. This analysis delves into how the United States’ healthcare expenditure compares to other large and affluent OECD countries, using metrics like median GDP and median GDP per capita to ensure a fair “Country Compare Size” evaluation. Our insights are drawn from the OECD Health Statistics database, providing a robust foundation for understanding these international differences.
U.S. Healthcare Spending Dwarfs That of Economically Similar Nations
It’s a well-established trend that wealthier countries tend to invest more in healthcare per person compared to lower-income nations. However, even within the realm of high-income countries, the United States stands out, allocating a considerably larger share of its resources to health.
Comparing healthcare spending across countries is inherently complex. Each nation operates with unique political, economic, and social frameworks that influence their spending priorities. Given the strong correlation between a country’s economic strength and its healthcare expenditure, our comparative analysis focuses on OECD countries that mirror the U.S. in economic “size”—those that have consistently demonstrated above-median national incomes and above-median income per person (measured by GDP and median GDP per capita) in at least one of the past ten years. This approach ensures we are truly engaging in a meaningful “country compare size” exercise within the context of healthcare spending.
The U.S. Spends Approximately Double Per Person on Health Compared to Other Large, Wealthy Nations
In 2022, health expenditures per person in the U.S. reached a staggering $12,555. This figure is not just incrementally higher; it surpasses every other high-income nation by over $4,000. To put this into perspective for a “country compare size” analysis, the average health spending per person in comparable countries is approximately $6,651. This means, on average, these nations spend about half of what the U.S. allocates per individual for healthcare. The visual representation of this data clearly illustrates the disproportionate “size” of U.S. healthcare spending when compared to its economic peers.
Per Capita Health Spending Increased Across Most Peer Nations in 2022
The year 2022 witnessed an upward trend in per capita health spending across almost all comparable nations. The Netherlands was a notable exception, experiencing a marginal decrease of 0.1%. In the U.S., per capita health spending increased by 2.9%. While this represents growth, it’s a more modest increase compared to many peer nations. It was, however, greater than the increases observed in Australia (2.4%), Canada (0.7%), and the United Kingdom (0.5%). Belgium recorded the most significant surge in per capita health spending among countries with available data for the 2021-2022 period, with an increase of 9.6%.
The 2.9% increase in U.S. per capita health spending is slightly above the 2.4% increase from 2020 to 2021. However, it remains considerably lower than the substantial 9.8% jump observed between 2019 and 2020, a period heavily influenced by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Related Content:
Health & Wellbeing
How does U.S. life expectancy compare to other countries?
Health Spending
How has U.S. spending on healthcare changed over time?
U.S. Health Spending as a GDP Share Decreased in 2022, Yet Remains High
Looking at the broader economic “size” comparison, the disparity between U.S. health spending as a proportion of GDP and that of comparable OECD countries has expanded over the last half-century. In 1970, the U.S. allocated approximately 6.2% of its GDP to health, a figure similar to several comparable nations (the average for comparably wealthy countries was around 4.9% of GDP in 1970). Until the 1980s, the U.S. was broadly in line with these countries. However, from the 1980s onwards, health spending in the U.S. accelerated at a considerably faster pace relative to its GDP growth. Consequently, health spending as a percentage of the economy has grown more rapidly in the U.S. than in its peer nations, widening the “size” gap in healthcare expenditure relative to economic output.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought about a dual impact: increased health spending and economic contraction. This combination led to a spike in health spending as a share of GDP in the U.S. and every comparable country between 2019 and 2020. As economies began to recover, health spending as a GDP percentage decreased in the U.S. and most peer nations. In 2020, U.S. health-related expenditures reached 18.8% of GDP, up from 16.7% in 2019. While this share declined to 17.4% in 2021 and further to 16.6% in 2022, it still remains significantly higher than in comparable countries, highlighting a persistent difference in the “size” of healthcare within the economy.
Pre-Pandemic, U.S. Health Spending Growth Slightly Outpaced Peer Nations
While the U.S. has consistently exhibited higher-than-average health spending, recent trends indicate accelerated spending growth in other nations as well. Historically, the 1980s marked a period of rapid expansion in U.S. per capita health expenditures. The average annual growth rate of 10.0% in the U.S. during the 1980s was notably higher than that of comparable countries, which averaged 7.3% annually.
Examining 5-year growth rates reveals shifts over time. During 2005-2010, the U.S. experienced an average annual health spending growth rate of 4.1%, a slowdown from the 7.2% rate in the preceding five years. Comparable countries also saw a deceleration in health spending growth, averaging 4.5% annually during 2005-2010, down from 5.3% in 2000-2005. In the five years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic (2015-2020), the U.S.’s per capita health spending growth (5.0%) exceeded the average for comparable countries (3.6%). However, the annual growth rate for comparable countries collectively increased to 7.0% between 2020 and 2022, while the U.S. saw a smaller increase of 2.7% during the same period, suggesting a potential shift in comparative growth trajectories in recent years for “country compare size” trends.
About this site
The Peterson Center on Healthcare and KFF are partnering to monitor how well the U.S. healthcare system is performing in terms of quality and cost.
[
